


The Red Magic Shop

by yoonjis_strap



Category: BLACKPINK (Band), Red Velvet (K-pop Band), VIXX, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Gang World, Anorexia, Blood Drinking, Blood Kink, Blood and Gore, Blood and Violence, Bondage, Dissociative Amnesia, Drug Use, Drugs, Eventual Smut, Ew, Gang Violence, Gay, Gay Sex, Gun Violence, Guns, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Incest, Indenial, LGBTQ Themes, Lingerie, Masochism, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Multi, POV Third Person, Rape/Non-con Elements, Sadism, Schizophrenia, Seizures, Sex, Sex Slavery, Sex Trafficking, Yeah...this story gets pretty messed up, drug lord, haematophilia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-12
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-06-09 07:16:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 10
Words: 46,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15262236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yoonjis_strap/pseuds/yoonjis_strap
Summary: "Damn it!!!"The emotions of dread, regret, and frustration were hitting Taehyung all at once when he started to come to terms what he had just experienced. And he hadn't heard it just yet, but there was a lot of noise blasting in his ears now that he could comprehend his surroundings. He just couldn't tell until it was too late.A bullet shot right through Taehyung's chest and the butterfly started a whole storm...





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Magic Shop" is a psychodramatic technique that exchanges fear for a positive attitude... Yet in this story... It has a much more calamitous meaning.

It's always breathtaking... Those days when you're suddenly a different person than who you were yesterday. Perhaps you'll start out as someone completely normal with barely any flaws or issues? Until your world is flipped upside-down and you're now one of the most abhorred people on Earth... That's what's problematic about this world. You should always be attentive to what you're saying or doing because you won't know when you'll be slandered for something out of your control.

That's probably why Taehyung ran away... Because he had no control over who loathed him... So he just vanished with the one person he loved.

"Breaking News in the Seo-gu prefecture. We've received news of an awful incident occurring at this very moment. There seems to be blatant gun activity going on between two suspected gangs. Police have surrounded the area in hopes to capture these delinquents that are disturbing the peace. Bon-Hwa? Can you hear me? What seems to be happening down there?" the camera cuts to reveal a middle-aged man dressed in a cheap suit, his thinning hair sweeped back with gel.

"Yes, Ae-Cha. I can hear you, loud and clear. I am standing here in front of the NPA Department of Busan as some of these terrorists are being detained and arrested. What seems to have started as a sunny and fun afternoon for the Seo-gu prefecture has soon turned to be a very dreadful and terrifying one. Some frightening gang activity has broke out between the well-known Lee and Chin gangs. Their gangs have been suspected of drug export and import for years and just now have snapped in a full out battle for power, police rushing to the scene in order to control the situation," the man named Bon-Hwa turns to look behind him at the NPA Department, police officers bringing in people left and right with their hands cuffed behind their backs.

The camera soon cuts back to the woman reporter, sitting at her desk. "It's truly sad what drugs can do to the youth nowadays. Word is-"

The television was turned off in a buzzing sound of static, Taehyung leaning back in a wheeled office chair while he held a remote up towards the TV connected to the wall on the upper-right of the back counter he sat behind. The hot summer air barreled itself inside of a small and secluded convenience store on a small and secluded street in the Yeonje-gu district of Busan, South Korea.

The bored man, silently, looked around at the empty store, feeling the cool air of a rotating fan every five seconds. The tiny shop had around 3 rows of snacks and drinks along with a section of magazines and newspaper. Not that anyone bought those anymore now that almost everybody had a phone that could inform them of anything at anytime during the day. It wasn't long before he had pulled out his own phone and was browsing on it himself.

Luckily, Taehyung was working by himself today so his manager wouldn't jump on his ass for being on his smartphone. Something his manager liked to do quite often, bark at him for doing something that didn't seem entirely wrong. His fingers scrolled through news articles on Naver and he shopped composedly for stuff on Amazon... Not that he could afford anything really, but he tried his best in search for something. Anything.

A bell rang out and Taehyung shot up his head from the screen of his cell, standing up in response to this sound. An elderly couple had just walked in, their complexion wrinkled and tired. The man looked gruff and seemed to be pulled by an invisible leash held by the woman, indicating a life of a hindrance due to the woman's governing nature.

"Welcome!" Taehyung put on a show for the couple, bowing politely, before sitting back down and staring down at his phone screen once more. He forgot his pity for the man quickly, and began glancing through dresses in the women's section. The dresses with no design whatsoever, and looked plain with only dark colors, ranged from 5,000 won to 13,000 won which was cheap, but he knew _she_ probably wouldn't like it due to the lousy material. He was shopping for someone with rich taste, honestly. Even though she has practically lived in humble settings her entire life, she still had the yearning of a wealthy woman.

So bothersome.

Without his paycheck, though, Taehyung had no chance of buying this for her. He sighed when he looked up once more to find the elderly staring at him and waiting for his services. "Ah, sorry. Let me ring that up for you."

He stood up and observed what they were buying. Two cans of pink lemonade and two packets of Pickachu Churros. He approved of the choices, scanned the tags, before he told them the price, letting them leave in a content manner and then going back to his bored state. What could he do? If he was in the position, it was possible he'd quit from such a low-paying occupation, but what would he do then? Live on the streets with such a picky girl? His landlord was already on thin ice with him so it's viable it didn't matter either way. His apartment was probably gonna be gone in the next few months an he really needed to apply to some more places, and get out of this unsuccessful work environment.

A buzz went off in his hand and a message appeared on the screen, making him click it instinctively.

**SIS: Can't wait for tonigight!!! <3**

**Me: tonight***

**SIS: Asshole :, <**

Taehyung chuckled a bit at his sister's text message before sliding the device onto the counter, standing up, and stretching out his throbbing muscles. He heard his back pop from the movement and gasped with satisfaction. He might as well look in the convenience store to buy something for her since he can't seem to bring himself to buy a 5,000 won dress. It was kind of pathetic of him to buy a gift from the convenience store that he works at to give to her, but he did know of one snack she certainly likes. So why not?

But before he was even able to cross over from behind the counter, into the main part of the store, someone new enters. At first, Taehyung couldn't even get a glance of her face due to the over-sized black hoodie she wore. Eventually, though, they locked eyes and he was subtly able to make out some details. She was quite beautiful and it dazed him to say the least. Auburn dyed hair dripped down past the hood and was curled to a certain lazy perfection. Her eyes were sharp and her brows, bold. Although she was quite short, she held an indisputable hierarchy about her. A hierarchy that made Taehyung immediately want to hold some sort of dominance over it.

It was... sexually appealing to say the least...

The woman was aware of his eyes on top of her, but Taehyung took no notice on how well she was aware. He didn't detect how truly tense she was. All he cared for was how plump her red lips were and the thickness of her thighs underneath her jean shorts. A warm sensation of butterflies were attacking his abdomen at this very moment and he simply couldn't believe such elegance could exist in this world.

 _Snap out of this, Taehyung. Why haven't you even greeted her yet, idiot?_ he thought, full of social anxiety _._

"Erm, w-welcome," he stuttered. Although, the pretty woman ignored him coldly, trying to avoid Taehyung's eyes at all cost, but it was a fail since his lust for her was killing him. He had to ask her out on a date. It was a must.

All logic had left brain due to the fact that he couldn't even afford a date when he already had an expensive girl back home, but he was too engrossed to _not_ speak with this lady. What was he thinking though? Asking a girl on a date when he's so cheap to the point where he won't even buy a 5,000 won dress? Male hormones are going to be the death of him.

He was about to part his lips when he registered something that he was witnessing. There was a black, clearly empty, backpack that she was holding and she was clearly acting very sketchy. He couldn't tell since her back was facing Taehyung, but she had started piling a few things in the bag. Taehyung clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth and sighed before coming out from behind the counter and rushing up behind her, disappointed.

He already had the bag in his hands before she could grasp that she had been caught. The startled woman stepped back, her mouth turning to a scowl pretty quickly. Taehyung looked into the backpack, confirming his suspicion.

"Got money to buy these?" he demanded. She attempted to snatch the bag back without saying a world, but he held it high above her head since he was much taller. "I asked a question."

That's the moment when he received the sassy roll of the eyes. "No, I don't have money. That's why I'm doing this in the first place. We gonna continue this conversation, or can we just get to the part where you call the police?"

Taehyung raised his brow and thought for a second before deciding. "How about a deal? I don't have to call the police. I can let you leave with this stuff and we'll be fine, but... You have to go on a date with me next Friday."

Her eyes narrowed and she shot a stare at him, examining his face. "Screw you. Just keep the damn candy bars and give me my bag so I can leave. I'll rob some other convenience store."

The authority in her voice dumbfounded Taehyung just enough to catch him off guard so she could jump up and grab the backpack. She dumped the innards on the floor before swiftly running down the aisle and swinging the store's doors open, and leaving. It all happened so quickly that Taehyung was astonished at the encounter. It was almost celestial in a way. A hot girl coming to steal? That's something that doesn't happen everyday.

Damn, he didn't even get her number.

The discouragement didn't last long when he realized the mess she had left on the floor, sighing before leaning down. She had packed a lot of candy bars in the bag and he was surprised it took him longer than five minutes to notice. Eventually he was able to clean up all the food and stack it back onto the shelves.

By the end of Taehyung's shift, he was extremely exhausted even though it was only 4 p.m.  He had bought his sister her birthday present already and had stuffed it inside the pocket of his jacket before checking out and leaving. The Sun was quite hot and was literally stabbing his skin while he rode his bike. The ride wasn't that long though and he only had to pass two blocks before he reached his destination, a thirteen story apartment complex that was particularly cheap.

Yeonje-gu district was seemingly quiet today and he could only spot a few people out on the streets. Very few of them would even notice Taehyung as he approached the building and only glimpsed up in order to walk past him, barely paying him any attention. And he blended in with them. He didn't glance at people because they weren't special. The people that walked along the streets were just normal people. They had no wealth or reputation just like Taehyung and would more than likely avert him. Perhaps that's how he liked it?

A life of simplicity.

"Taehyung!" a high-pitched voice alerted him and he peered up from locking his bike into place so it wouldn't be stolen. He was surprised to see his little sister running up to him from a completely different direction he expected her to come from. Instead of exiting the apartment building, she was in a rush to catch up to where he was. He must've passed her on his way home.

"Yerim," he said. "What're you doing out here?"

Yerim slowed down to a walking pace, trying to catch her breathe before she stopped in front of him. "I was helping Mrs. Chew walk her dog like _you_ were supposed to do yesterday. I did it instead since I know you'll probably never get around to it."

He licked his lips and nodded. "Yep, one of the only things you'll probably be useful for. Walking dogs."

The 19 year old girl frowned and punched the man in arm lightly. "Asshole."

Taehyung and Yerim chuckled at each other before he sighed and sat down on the stairs in front of the complex's doors, allowing Yerim to follow his movements. The two blonde siblings watched as cars flew past them on the asphalt roads before one of them finally spoke up.

"Here," Taehyung reached into his pocket and pulled out two lonesome snicker bars, handing one of them to his sister. "Happy birthday."

She stared down at the chocolate bar and gave a pained half-smile. But it was clearly a joking one. She didn't hate the gift, that's for sure. But that was still debatable.

"Snickers? Wow. You get more creative each year, don't you, Tae?"

"Please, save the compliments for later."

"Number One Brother of the Year Award goes to..."

"Tsk..." Taehyung rolled his eyes at her unsure response, but they both ended up laughing it off. "Don't worry, next year will be even better. Expect something like taffy or Twizzlers."

"Ugh... Don't even think about it," she mocked as she peeled off the plastic of the candy bar and lightly began to chew on the chocolate and peanut delight. "At least this is my favorite kind of candy."

"Yep."

Silence befell them as the heat continued to bite at their skin and soon they had both eaten their snickers. But they didn't say anything, sitting next to each other on those stone stairs. It was a comfortable silence, luckily.

"Taehyung," Yerim jumped up and dusted off her shorts from behind and turned back around to face him. She looked very similar to him especially since they had both dyed their hair blonde, but their facial features were pretty familiar as well. She had a couple of beauty marks like him and she also had a long nose like his. It discouraged him to say this, but she was the better looking sibling even though she was quite short. Taehyung practically towered over her.

"Huh?"

"I wanna go somewhere for my birthday. It's better than some lame snickers bar."

"Lame? I thought you liked it."

"Ha. Funny. Don't worry, it's in your budget range. You'll only have to use coins," she begged relentlessly.

He shot her a small glare before sighing. "What place is it?"

"That arcade we kept seeing on television."

Taehyung scrunched up his face, unsure. "Really? I thought it was expensive since it was being advertised."

"Apparently not. I checked it out today and we only have to use coins to use the machines. It looks really fun."

The sincerity in Yerim's eyes made Taehyung give up on his indecisiveness and sighed. "Fine, lead the way."

The young girl smiled brightly as she began skipping down the sidewalk in pursuit of a much better birthday present. Maybe the arcade had snacks, but Taehyung was doubtful. Whenever it was one of their birthdays, they had to choose between food or a cool birthday present. Taehyung usually chose food, while Yerim chose to go to fun places or to buy something expensive. He should have expected this from the very beginning.

Anyhow, it didn't matter to him either way. He enjoyed seeing his sister have fun even though she could be a literal demon at times. As long as she was happy, he was happy. It did annoy him that he'd go through this night without anything to eat, but her grin was enough to keep him going. Hopefully.

When Taehyung and Yerim reached the arcade, not many people were there yet. So that meant they mostly got the games to themselves. The arcade had colorful, patterned carpets and flashing lights coming from each game machine. The atmosphere was fun and was quite stimulating. There was PAC-Man, Galaga, Space Invaders, Q'bert, Donkey Kong, and a lot more to pick from. **(A/N: I respect anyone who actually knows what these games are.)**

Taehyung mostly focused on the claw machines and DDR while his sister played some racing games. They spent the rest of their evening using all of Taehyung's coins in order to play games. And, in the end, it was worth it because they were able to leave with laughing personas.

"Did you see that lady hitting the claw machine?!" Yerim cackled, as she breathlessly hit her brother's arm, clearly joking with each other.

"She started getting jealous of how many stuffed animals we had!!" Taehyung snickered as he hugged his new teddy bear close, or rather his sister's new teddy bear, and swung his arm over her shoulder as they laughed in what looked like a drunken state.

The excited siblings finally turned a corner, trying to get all the giggles out before halting right in front of an ice cream shop. Taehyung could already feel Yerim's pleading eyes. "You know what? Let's go get some ice cream. I still got some money to my name," he grinned.

Yerim clapped with pure glee as they sprung inside of the shop. They walked up to the counter and looked down at the menu to see what this place had to offer. The man behind the counter greeted them with a friendly smirk, obviously noticing that Taehyung and Yerim were high off of laughing gas, feeling the happiness radiate off of them. Yerim whispered the flavor she wanted and Taehyung looked up at the man working.

"One small vanilla shake and a single brownie fudge sundae, please."

The employee got straight to work as Taehyung and Yerim shot each other smiles before Yerim was handed her brownie fudge sundae and Taehyung was handed his vanilla shake. They complimented the man's services before leaving the shop in good spirits, astonishingly having something to eat at the end of the day. That was something they didn't expect.

The vanilla sweetness touched his palette, making him shiver from it's cold exterior. "Dang, this ice cream's pretty good. We need to keep coming here, don't we?" Taehyung assured her as they walked down the dark streets. It was already getting pretty late and was almost 10 p.m. But Taehyung and Yerim commenced with just walking, blissful to the night's cool air. The ice cream and breeze was a nice addition to the blistering summer that Busan had been experiencing.

"Yep," Yerim expressed.

Soon enough, the comfortable lull consumed them once more. Taehyung liked this. Spending time with the only person he cared about in this prejudice world. He liked the crisp night air. He liked the dark city sky with barely any glimmering stars. He liked the distance sound of dogs barking, car alarms, the subway. He liked everything in this very moment and he didn't have to worry about anything. Nothing at all.

He held no doubt at all. That was until Yerim stopped in her tracks in front of him and dropped the ice cream and stuffed animals she held. Something had snapped in her and it made Taehyung freeze in his place as he stared at the back of her. She had changed in a split second along with the aura of the night. He knew something was wrong, but was too afraid to ask. He just stood there in a unsettling stance, not knowing what to say or do. What was wrong?

He didn't know until he heard something. The sounds of screeching tires against the road was approaching them quickly. It wasn't something that they heard often when inside of the Yeonje-gu district so it made both of them tense up. It was a terrifying noise to hear a car's tires scraping against concrete so quickly. But it was approaching and Taehyung couldn't do anything about it since what happened next happened in a flash.

Just like that... A butterfly effect ripped through his life and seized the only thing he loved.

A black car, that he had never seen before, turned down the road Taehyung and Yerim were standing by and raced towards them with screaming tires before closing to a halt right in front of them. He had no idea what was going on when he saw two men exit the car with a taser gun and a bat, their faces covered with black masks before they grabbed onto his sister.

The men were clearly well built and held on to Yerim tightly, covering her mouth as she struggled to get away for them. Taehyung was rooted in place, shock and confusion attacking him about what was happening. His sister? What...?

Taehyung's aspect hardened, turning to pure resentment

"Taehyung!" the scream was muffled due to one of the men's hands covering her lips, but that was enough to snap him back into reality before he rushed over and planted a fat punch into the first man's face, disabling him.

"Get the fuck off her!" Taehyung barked, as he tugged on Yerim's arm in order to free her. This turned out to be a mistake because he next felt a sharp pain in his side coming from the tase gun the first man held. The shock rushed through his body, slamming him against the sidewalk and causing him to have a seizure-like reaction to the charge.

Taehyung jerked back and forth, hearing the aggressive electric sound of a taser and feeling shocks shoot up and down his skin. It was too late for him to rescue his sister from being taken by the predators so when he came through once more, he saw the tires of the black car turning in a fast circular motion before the vehicle drove off once again. Swift to react, the injured man shot up from the sidewalk and began chasing after them with a lump rising in his esophagus.

"Hey! Hey! Get back here!" Panic rose in his chest as he pumped his tired legs forward. Adrenaline was bursting through his veins and all he could do was sprint after the speeding car, pulling out his phone in the process. His phone was shattered though due to the struggle he just was a part of. He scowled as he continued to run, throwing his phone behind him and running like a Gold Olympian towards the sports car. "Come back!!!"

It was amazing what adrenaline could do for you if you wanted to catch someone or run away from someone. But Taehyung's efforts turned worthless when he saw the car turn down an alley way and speed off when he thought he finally caught up. His heart was beating against his rib cage as he tried to catch his breathe, sweat and exhausted tears pooling from his body. "Damn it!" he screamed, shooting his fingers through his matted locks.

"Damn it!!!"

The emotions of dread, regret, and frustration were hitting Taehyung all at once when he started to come to terms what he had just experienced. And he hadn't heard it just yet, but there was a lot of noise blasting in his ears now that he could comprehend his surroundings. He just couldn't tell until it was too late.

A bullet shot right through Taehyung's chest and the butterfly started a whole storm...


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Namjoon looked over at the familiar woman whom was now laying on the bed lazily, her bare feet up against the wall. But what caught Taehyung's scrutiny was the sole fact that this woman was deliberately and meticulously slicing her skin with the same scissors that Taehyung had tried to stab her with. Blood was dripping from the wounds on her wrists, a seemingly innocent smile playing on her face as the red liquid dripped into her mouth, staining her lips with a crimson blemish. "You don't mess with someone like that, Taehyung. That's just dumb. You're not dumb, are you?"

Ringing.

There was a specific type of ringing that Taehyung could hear and it was pissing him off to say the least. It wasn't unfamiliar, though. This ringing, he's heard it a dozen times. And each time he heard it, he ignored it. He, at some point, forgot that it even existed when he learned to accept who he was. But this time... Taehyung couldn't completely ignore this obnoxious sound. It was devouring every inch of his soul and it agitated him to the core.

Why did this sound have to attack him at this very moment when he was sleeping so soundly? It was so peaceful before the ringing decided to pay a visit. The soft sheets that were laying on top of him and the cool air hitting his face gave him a relaxed feeling. He was completely content except for this sound that continued to bother him.

And he didn't dare want to open his eyes to find out what was happening around him. He was hoping that the sound would just go away at some point while he kept his eyes closed. It never did leave though. All he wanted at the moment was to sleep, but he couldn't. He knew he couldn't.

Taehyung finally took the risk and leapt, slowly fluttering open his lids to see a bright and translucent light. It blinded him for a split second before everything came into focus, disorientation being the first thing that arrived in his mind. The ceiling he was viewing. He's never seen it before and it didn't go to his bedroom in his apartment. Where was he?

His view shifted when he finally was able to move his sleepy gaze, and what he saw and felt shocked him. Never in his life had he been in this room before. Taehyung saw that he was laying on a bed with gray sheets, an end table right at the headboard. The walls were painted a plain gray and there was a dresser near the far right of the corner with a flat screen TV hovering over it. Right next to Taehyung was a drip chamber that clearly lead to an IV stuck inside his arm, making him gasp before ripping it out from his vein. It stung and a bit of blood escaped, but subdued quickly.

Taehyung was swift to kick off the blankets from his body and aimed to rise from the bed, feeling dizzy as he ascended from the serene blankets. It took him a couple minutes to focus his sight once more before he finally was able to see that there was an open door leading to a bathroom, instantly drawing him in.

Right as he was about to take a step towards it though, he continued to feel a sharp pain in his chest that wouldn't stop screaming at him as he got closer to the restroom. When Taehyung entered, he immediately turned on the light and glanced at himself in the mirror to see a mess. He was only wearing jeans and had a huge bandage right over his chest. Sweat was dripping down his forehead and his hair was clearly tousled, probably since he hadn't taken a shower yet.

Where was he? This wasn't a hospital, that's for sure...

And that's when it hit him. That night... It wasn't just a dream. He remembered Yerim's birthday and recalled taking her out to an arcade where she was unexpectedly kidnapped. He chased that ebony vehicle three blocks until they turned into an alley and he got in the middle of what looked like a gunfight? And then he... was shot...

After that, everything was blank.

That's when the anxiety set in. Taehyung's aching chest started to hurt more as the fear hit him. He was baffled to where he was and started losing it, the beginning stages of a panic attack assaulting him head on. His inhales turned sharp and his whole body started to quiver uneasily. Immediately, in search for something to protect him, he began hunting for any type of weapon inside the drawers of the sink's counter.

There were some hairbrushes, medical supplies, soap. Finally, though, his eyes landed on a small pair of scissors. Right as he located them, he began hearing noises coming from outside the bedroom, causing his heart rate to rise increasingly fast. He instantaneously grabbed the scissors in a hurry as he heard the door swing open, footsteps echoing in his ears.

A figure made it's way over to the doorway of the restroom, a shadow of an unwelcome being, giving him the cue to attack. It was utterly pointless, though, since the silhouette easily dodged Taehyung's pursue, twisting the blade out of his hand and throwing him to the ground. Taehyung felt some agony on the arm that he landed on before he saw another person rush their way into the room with none other than a syringed needle, stabbing it into the demobilized man's neck.

Taehyung, determined to attack the people that were holding him hostage, felt lightheaded as soon as the person had injected him with the liquid. More than likely a sedative. Tsk... How troublesome...

~~~~

Taehyung woke up in a frenzy, stirring as he felt some tight material pinching at his bare skin. Rope. He was now settled on a chair, tied tightly so he would not be able to move. He jerked around a bit before finally looking up from the binds that he had laced around his torso, wrists, and ankles. There, standing, were the two people that had disarmed and drugged him before putting him in a chair, restrained. A woman and a man.

It wasn't this situation that astonished him the most though. It was the fact that the woman standing in front of him... He knew her. She was the very same woman who had attempted to steal a bunch of food from the convenience store recently, and whom Taehyung had flirted with effortlessly.

She was still dazzling even from where he was sitting.

"You..." he mouthed under his breathe.

This was beyond embarrassing, frightening, and intriguing. It was something you'd see in movies or something. Why was it happening to him of all people? Why couldn't he just get a normal life with his little sister? Not that his life has ever been normal to start with...

Taehyung then progressed to look over at the much taller man standing next to _the_ woman. He was possibly an inch taller than Taehyung and had a black undercut hairstyle. He had bold brows and eyes with mono lids. His face was round and had a certain charm to it. His whole body was broad. Taehyung kept his mouth closed, trying to sustain his hefty breathing.

"He's awake, Namjoon," the woman informed the man as she crossed his arms.

Right as she said that, Taehyung stiffened from the man's eyes now burning into him. Lightly, he leaned down to Taehyung's height and placed a large hand on his shoulder, not putting a lot of pressure or weight on him.

"Hey, hey... You alright? You had quite the spill the other day. I'm surprised... you're not dead..." the man named Namjoon said. Taehyung started looking around nervously, trying to avert his gaze from this man's terrorizing, yet calm, eyes. "Hey. Hey! Look at me, look at me."

He began snapping his fingers together when Taehyung continued to look over at the woman. "Don't look at her, look at me, okay? This is just a conversation between us right now, okay? Now... We don't plan to hurt you unless you make us, alright? I just want to make that clear. We're not some savages looking to harm you... Do you know what happened?"

Taehyung was sure he'd continue, but this Namjoon was clearly searching for an answer. "U-Um... I t-think I got shot, right?"

Namjoon nodded, pursing his lips. "Mhmm. You did get shot. Let me ask, what's your name? Do you remember it?"

"T-Taehyung... Kim Taehyung."

"You aren't lying to us, are you?" he felt Namjoon's grasp tighten.

"N-No... No, I promise."

"Good... I don't like liars, 'Taehyung'. And trust me, I deal with a lot of liars when I'm at work. Luckily, I don't think that was a lie. I would've probably smacked you if it were," Namjoon let go of Taehyung for a second before scooting over another chair he had just noticed was sitting in the room. The broad man sat down to finally be at proper eye level with Taehyung. "Now... I'm gonna ask a few questions and if you don't answer correctly, my friend here... Well, she'll do some things you probably won't like. Unless you're some kind of masochist? Are you a masochist, Taehyung?"

"N-No, sir."

He placed his elbow against knee and leaned against the palm of his hand sluggishly. "Ah, that's good. I've come across a few of those types in my time. They're interesting. Feeling pleasure from pain. I've heard a lot of people are into that. Especially when it's by someone they adore. Being spanked, bitten. All kinds of things. But I've never really met a masochist that was into being hurt by strangers. Except... Heh... This one time. They really enjoyed pain, Taehyung. This person. Every time we punched them or used any type of tool to screw up their body in a malicious way. They responded positively. It scared me, Taehyung. It really did. And I'm rarely scared. Do you know who that person is, Taehyung? The masochist that I tortured for days and they relished in it?" Namjoon was staring at Taehyung with a smirk on his face. An amused one.

Again, Taehyung responded, obviously intimidated by the story. Where the hell was this going? "No, sir."

"Well, she's laying right there... Taehyung," Namjoon looked over at the familiar woman whom was now laying on the bed lazily, her bare feet up against the wall. But what caught Taehyung's scrutiny was the sole fact that this woman was deliberately and meticulously slicing her skin with the same scissors that Taehyung had tried to stab her with. Blood was dripping from the wounds on her wrists, a seemingly innocent smile playing on her face as the red liquid dripped into her mouth, staining her lips with a crimson blemish. "You don't mess with someone like that, Taehyung. That's just dumb. You're not dumb, are you?"

It took several seconds for Taehyung to respond, his eyes trembling from glaring at the disturbing girl. Never in his life had he seen such an image even though he has seen some fucked up things. This just gave him the chills. Back at the convenience store, he hadn't noticed since he was so focused on her exquisite face and the fact that she was stealing.... but now he could see it distinctly. Scars were trailing up and down her bare legs, some jagged and some clean. The hoodie that she was wearing clung to her gaunt exterior. All Taehyung could wonder was if this woman had been starving herself due to the pure joy of the anguish... Was that why she was stealing food?

"Taehyung?" Namjoon snapped him back, Taehyung staring him dead in the eyes once more.

"No, sir," he answered to the previous question.

"Good... Hehe... Sorry for such the long monologue. Let us get down to business, Tae. You don't mind me calling you Tae, do you?"

"No, sir."

Namjoon peered at him for a second before commencing the interrogation. "You were running after someone that night, you know? It was a car. Did you know the people in that car?"

"No, sir. Just my sister."

"Your sister?"

"She was kidnapped and I chased the car down that alley."

"Kidnapped... Did you see the faces of the people that kidnapped her?"

"No, sir."

Namjoon sighed as he leaned back in his seat. "Damn... Now I feel shitty. Tell me, do you know what was happening when you ran down that alley? Do you know what was occurring there?"

Again, Taehyung answered the same way. It was becoming kind of repetitive. "No, sir."

Namjoon squinted his brown eyes. "A gang fight to put it simply. If you even watch the news or go on social media, then you probably have already heard about them. It's a trifling time, isn't it?"

The woman whom was still lapping up her own blood turned over on her stomach, letting her bleeding hands spill off the bed. "Namjoon, you talk too fucking much. Kid, do you know the Kang Family or not? That's all we want to know."

Taehyung glanced back and forth between the two people. "N-No... I don't know them."

Namjoon sighed, rolling his eyes to the back of his head, and rose from the bed, going to the bathroom to grab something. He quickly came back with a rag. "Joohyun, clean yourself up before you bleed anymore on the damn floor."

Swiftly, she snatched the rag up with such agility that the exchange was almost too fast. Nonhuman, almost. The woman named Joohyun began rubbing the rag against her wrist that looked like it potentially was widening the slices on her wrist due to the way she was rubbing them. It disgusted Taehyung, his stomach flipping as she played with her wounds a bit more before getting up from the bed.

"Alright," Namjoon spoke. "That's all we needed to know, to be honest. Speaking of honesty, I believe everything you said. Good job, Tae... But you're not off the hook so far. You've still got someone to meet." Taehyung didn't dare question it any longer, but he couldn't help but feel stressed about who he was next about to see. This place was filled with crazy people, it seemed.

Namjoon commenced to untie Taehyung's torso and legs steadily, taking a step back to make sure Taehyung had no intentions to kick him. Although, he left Taehyung's arms tied before forcing him up from the seat, Joohyun watching them carefully.

The exhausted man felt Namjoon's strong grip on his shoulder as he began pushing him forward, forcing him to walk. While he was being pushed from the room, he felt Joohyun suddenly appear behind him before whispering in his ear.

"If you try anything... I'll kill you."

Those words and the feeling of her hot breathe on his ear gave him enough shivers to last him years. It took him a solid minute to realize that Namjoon had already opened the door to the room and revealed a whole different section to a building. A house, just like Taehyung assumed.

What he first saw was a cloud of smoke that swiftly cleared, Taehyung smelling cigarettes in the air along with hearing the sound of pop music. When the smoke cleared, several people were outside this room, inside a living room. Men and women full of different diversity were all walking around, some dancing, several smoking, some sniffing and injecting drugs, and a lot of people drinking. It was some sort of party and people were completely ignorant to Joohyun and Namjoon exiting with a prisoner. 

Taehyung's eyes stung from the smoke and the stench of body odor was pretty intense.

The living room they had entered had two nice leather couches with several people sitting on it. A few were making out heavily while there was a coffee table right in the middle with an array of beer cans and bottles on top of it. On the wall farthest from where Taehyung was standing, there was a large television with a speaker blasting music underneath it.

They then exited to a kitchen that had people dancing on the dining table with drinks in their hands. It was a complete and utter mess and none of the people there had any idea what was going on with Taehyung. They didn't even look at him. Like before... he was a nobody to then.

"Stop staring," Namjoon warned as he continued steering Taehyung through the crowd of people, arriving at a set of stairs sitting to the left of the kitchen. When they reached the top of the stairs, they arrived in a long hallway with many doors and paintings. The hall had a modern, yet formal, ambience to it. This house looked nice even with the crazy guests added to the decoration.

Finally, Taehyung and the other two reached a room in which Namjoon instantly barged in without knocking, shoving Taehyung in first. It confounded Taehyung when he entered due to the fact that the first thing he saw were two men, one straddled on top of the other, making out in a very sexual and intimate way. They were both in a rolling chair behind a desk, the room they had entered clearly looking like some sort of office, with several shelves of trophies and plaques hung on the gray wallpaper.

The man on top was wearing baby pink lingerie set, his ass being cradled by his partner as they locked lips. All of this stopped when the man on bottom heard everyone enter. "Sorry to interrupt, Jimin. He finally woke up," Namjoon declared without a care in the world.

The one he addressed as Jimin, the one holding the other man in his lap, scowled. He couldn't have been any older or any younger than Taehyung and had dyed red hair, parted in the middle. His eyes were wide and full of what seemed like passion, but could be mistaken for softness, although this man didn't seem soft at all at the moment. His aggressive tone indicated otherwise. It was a duality that shouldn't be doubted.

"I told you guys earlier today that I wanted some peace and quiet while the celebration was going on downstairs. What the fuck happened?" Jimin growled.

"This asshole woke up and attacked Joohyun," Namjoon lightly pushed Taehyung forward, making him almost trip over his own feet. Asshole? After treating Namjoon so nicely, he's now an asshole?

The red haired man glanced up and down at what he was dealing with and sighed. "And what the hell did he have to say about that?"

"Seems the kid's innocent. Doesn't know the Kang family and was only chasing after a car. Some people captured his sister, supposedly."

"You believe him?"

"He wouldn't be standing here if I didn't," Namjoon defended.

Jimin closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose, irritated. "Get out. You too, babe." The man in lingerie slowly kissed Jimin on the forehead one last time before leisurely rising off his partner's lap. He didn't question it and slowly walked to the other side of the desk, Taehyung finally getting a better look at him now that his back wasn't faced to him. He was... extremely attractive to Taehyung's surprised, his face having a certain desirability to it. His hair was a dark brown, lightly dusting over his brows. His face was clear of any acne or scars and he had a sharp jawline, his eyes were soft almost like a... doe. Doe eyes?

His eyes weren't the only thing that caught Taehyung's attention though.... Since this man was barely clothes, Taehyung almost saw everything. He had a pink, lacy strapless drape hanging from his broad and muscled shoulders along with a frilly thong, his bulge strategically tucked in and his soft ass showing in the back.

It was difficult to look away from what could have been a walking art piece. How do you even score such a piece of ass?

Lust was starting to grow in Taehyung's groin, but he kept it under maintenance as everyone left. He let out a deep breathe, relieved he didn't have to see that while he talked to this Jimin. Embarrassingly enough, though, Jimin caught him looking. "He's a prize, isn't he?" Taehyung blinked, flustered at Jimin's words and looking around like he hadn't just heard that. "His name is Jeon Jungkook and he's _all_ mine."

Jimin had a smirk on his face as he continued to stare at Taehyung with a tasteful dominance. "Sit down before you piss yourself. I've already had too many stains on this floor," he joked. Taehyung blinked out of his stunned trance and looked around one last time before approaching the desk and sitting on one of the two chairs opposite of where Jimin was sitting. Jimin immediately held out his hand. "Park Jimin. I'm the son of the man who owns this estate. He's currently on a business trip and won't be back for some time so I'm running the show at the moment. What about you? Who are you?"

It almost sounded like a challenge.

"K-Kim Taehyung," he stuttered again, reaching out and shaking Jimin's hand, a bit hesitant since he doesn't know what he's been doing with it. Jimin's hands were much smaller than Taehyung's, but his grip was way more blunt and gruff.

"So I hear you're 'innocent'?" Jimin said as he leaned back in your chair. "You have no correlation of the Kang Family or any other family for that matter?"

"Family?"

He smacked his lips. "Gangs, Taehyung. I'm asking if you've ever been or are in a gang, Taehyung."

A flabbergasted expression instantaneously showed on Taehyung's face. "Gang?"

"I'll take that as a no..." Jimin noted. And after that, things turned silent for bit, Jimin turning back and forth in the chair. "What happened? Your sister was captured?"

"Uh... Yes. I was chasing after a car that took her when I was shot," he hastily replied.

"Crazy... And you're just an everyday man? What do you do for a living?"

"I work at a convenience store. My sister and I live together and we were going out for her birthday when it happened."

"Talk about a birthday disaster..." Taehyung stared at Jimin coldly. "Sorry, too soon. Do you know if your sister got involved with anything bad lately? Bad people, drugs?"

"N-No. She wouldn't do that. She's too good for this world."

Jimin spun around in his chair before propping his feet on the desk to reveal some polished shoes. They looked expensive. "Then there's a few possible explanations, but I'd have to confirm it first."

"Confirm what?"

Jimin glanced at him, his fingers folded lazily. "Listen, Taehyung. I don't know you and the business I work in is very... delicate. The things I do are not to be taken lightly and I don't want to underestimate you since I don't you. For all I know, you're a very skilled liar and even fooled Namjoon.  So for now, I'd like to keep you hidden for a few more days. You've been here for three already, but I'd like to do some sort of background check before I even consider letting you go. And since you were technically in the middle of a gang fight, our enemies know your face and probably are wondering who you are, too. So... For now, you'll stay here. Are you against that?"

Taehyung, twiddling his thumbs, sitting there for a few seconds, thinking about it. "Do I have a choice?"

"Not really, no."

"Then I guess I'll stay without fighting anyone at least."

"Great. For now you'll continue to stay in the bedroom downstairs. Make yourself feel comfortable, 'kay? And please don't attack anyone again? You're dismissed," Jimin began shooing him out with his hand, probably tired of seeing his face. "Oh, yeah... Taehyung... One more thing, you have something on your face."

Taehyung, bringing his tied hands close to his cheek before bringing it back down to see a dot of a red substance.

It was the blood from Joohyun's wrists.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Since you guys are just citizens, there's only two explanations on why she was kidnapped. Your sister either got involved with something considerably illegal recently or she is being transported into the sex trafficking world to be sold as we speak."

There's always this numb feeling Taehyung gets when he's thinking about bad things. He never really got stressed or worried when contemplating about such stuff. It was only until he was experiencing grim circumstances that the apprehension set in. And that's what he loathed about himself. Why couldn't he just wait until he was alone to let all the emotions out? Yeah, sometimes he got lucky and got angry while no one else was around... But around people, his exterior becomes weak and he can't help, but turn into a frenzy of rage.

He despised seeming weak in front of people, crying specifically. That's why he stopped doing it when he was ten years old. One day, one very important day, he just forgot the ability how to let tears come out. He hasn't cried since that day. Not because he hated crying in general, but because he disliked when people comforted him. His urge to be independent and not need anyone to take care of him has left him cold and numb. And he liked it that way.

The one thing he could never get rid of though was fear. It still lingered inside his soul and ate away at him. He's tried to run away several times with his sister, but it always caught up to them. This time, though, it had them both by the neck, but Taehyung was alone to take on this endeavor.

It was no surprise to him that he woke up from a nightmare about Yerim being taken by those filthy men, the scene of that retched night still playing in his head over and over again like a CD of repeat. Sticky sweat was dripping down his back, neck, and forehead making his sheets damp. It disheartened him when he realized once more that he wasn't at home. Instead, he was here. In Park Jimin's penthouse. In a situation he didn't think he'd ever be in. Yet, here he is.

Taehyung rose from the stranger's bed and lazily began strolling over to the bathroom, staring at himself in the mirror. A blonde young adult with no goals in life besides keeping his sister and him fed. That's who he was. And now he's a blonde young adult who's searching for that sister, unsure of where she was, much less where he was. Was he even in Busan anymore? He had to be, right?

Slowly, Taehyung began stripping his clothes to shower. Last night, Namjoon gave him an outfit of his so he'd at least have something to wear. He still didn't know how to feel about everyone though. Namjoon is a strange man who gave him an intimidating talk about masochism. Joohyun is the masochist who threatened to kill him. And Park Jimin... is some man his age who has a "pet" named Jeon Jungkook. A very... daring pet... that walks around in women's lingerie.

To be honest, he was clueless on how to read the people he had just met. He didn't know if he should be scared or shy towards them. Either way... He didn't want to say a lot and should keep his words to a minimum. These people had to be dangerous, correct? Especially that Joohyun woman... The thought of her eyes still gave him chills even when the hot, steamy water poured on top of him from the shower head, the scent off Irish spring filling his nostrils.

He started cleaning his body with a bar of soap, lathering under his armpits, his chest, his back, his legs, and being especially diligent with his length, making sure to get under the foreskin and to rinse in between his ass cheeks. Finally he lathered his hair with shampoo and conditioner, washing away any unwanted dirt, dandruff, grease, or sweat.

Finishing off, Taehyung turned off the water and stepped out, drying off with a fluffy, white towel, feeling appeased with the type of material. Suddenly, he heard a knock on the door.

"Yeah?"

"Breakfast is ready, idiot," he heard Joohyun's voice before she stomped off with a sigh. Rude brat. Well, she acted like a brat... But she was actually older than him by five years so it's not like he could slap her and put her in her place. She'd probably enjoy it anyways.

Taehyung started getting dressed in a plain white t-shirt and ripped jeans that Namjoon gave him before leaving his hair damp, walking out of the bathroom and leaving all the way to go to the living room. It was almost completely empty compared to yesterday. Yesterday, there was a considerable amount of people in here doing all sorts of things. A party with drinks, dancing, and drugs. Something he hasn't done in years.

When Taehyung reached the kitchen he saw Namjoon, Joohyun, and Jimin sitting at the small, round dining table while Jungkook was at the stove, cooking. It smelled like eggs and toast when Taehyung sat down, tapping his fingers against the marble of the table as everyone, but Joohyun, acknowledged him.

"Good morning," they almost all said in unison.

"Good morning," he replied with a tip of his head before scooting in his chair to join everyone. He commenced to observe that everyone was eating egg toast sandwich with brown sugar and pork.

But Joohyun had nothing in front of her and was casually balancing her head on her hand while she scrolled on her phone. Today, she was now just wearing a gray tank top that exposed her chest and some white jeans. There were clearly a lot more scars that he was noticing now that her arms weren't covered. It's weird, he's met suicidal people who have done this, but never to this extent. Usually they kept to their wrists or thighs... For Joohyun, though, it covered the entirety of her scrawny body. Except for her impeccable and flawless face.

"Taehyung's your name, isn't it?" a voice peaked his attention from Joohyun's body and he looked up to see Jungkook speaking with him, as he placed a plate in front of him. He wasn't wearing lingerie like last time, but his clothing was still pretty skimpy. A blue crop top with black booty shorts.

"Erm, yes."

"Don't mind Joohyun. She's a bitch when strangers start living here," Jungkook announced, receiving the middle finger from the scarred woman while he walked past her back to the stove. "I hear you work at a convenience store. I used to work at one of those. Do you enjoy it?"

"Not entirely."

Jungkook perked up his head from cooking when he heard that, but Taehyung was too involved with his breakfast to notice. The pork and toast was dry, but the eggs helped moisturize it and made it taste extremely delicious. He was a good cook.

"Why don't you like it?"

"Shitty boss. And it's boring."

"Ah, I see. Every job I've worked at has been enjoyable for the most part... Have you always lived in Busan, Taehyung?"

Taehyung stopped chewing at this. "Excuse me?"

"Have you always lived in Busan?"

"Yes, I have." His words were very direct as if he was trying to make it sound believable.

Suddenly, Namjoon finished eating. "Stop boring the man with small talk, Jungkook. That's the last thing he needs right now. Let's ask him some better questions. Fore example, are you a virgin, Taehyung?"

Taehyung snorted at this question, spitting his orange juice back into his cup as a coughing fit erupted. Namjoon chuckled at his inconvenience he started before Jimin looked over. "Namjoon, chill for once in your life. He's our guest, not a new play thing. Don't ask him such perverted things."

"Ah, you're no fun. None of you are. We don't know how long he's staying. We should get to know him a bit while he's here."

Joohyun crinkled her brows in repugnance. "He's not staying here for long. Once we do a background check on him and make sure he isn't lying, he's leaving."

Namjoon clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. "You know nothing, Joohyun. Why don't you just go back to scrolling on those porn sites you're always on?"

That suggestion made Taehyung choke once more on a piece of pork. It wasn't long before Jungkook came over and slapped Namjoon on the back of the head before sitting square on Jimin's lap, a plate in his hands for himself. Who the hell were these people?

"You guys are such children and yet I'm the youngest one here. Seriously, have some hospitality, will you?" He says that even while sitting on Jimin's lap? "Taehyung, dear, tell us something that isn't perverted. Do you have any hobbies?"

"Um... Photography," it sounded more like a question than an answer.

"Oh, photography? I enjoy photography as well! What do you take pictures of?"

"Usually people."

"Have any specific models?"

"Not really," That was a lie. "I just go around the streets sometimes and ask people if I can take pictures of them."

"That sounds like fun," Jungkook smiled as he crunched on a piece of toast, professing genuine enthusiasm about the subject. "You'd have to show me your work sometime. Personally, I take photos of landscapes. Which is pretty typical, so meeting someone who takes pictures of people is always a pleasure. The fact that you don't have a model is even better."

Jimin leaned forward to grab his drink. "You sure are talkative today. Aren't you, babe?"

"Heh, sorry..." he stared down at his loved one with a smirk, making Taehyung cringe a bit.

The aura of the room began to calm down as everyone continued eating their breakfast, Namjoon cleaning up his dishes. Unexpectedly, though, Taehyung heard footsteps coming down the stairs of the penthouse. And before he knew it, someone new entered the room. He didn't really know what to expect, but he was kind of hoping they weren't nuts like the rest of the people he was with at the moment. That was wishful thinking...

"Sooyoung, you're finally awake. Do you want me to cook you something?" Jungkook asked. It was another woman, whom was slightly taller than Joohyun. She had medium length brown hair that was quite dismantled and tangled. She was hunched over in an exhausted manner as she dragged her feet over the kitchen tiles over to the coffee maker. Her eyes were swollen from either a hangover or from lack of sleep and her lips were chapped. Was she alright?

Sooyoung responded with only a grunt, and somehow... Jungkook understood it while she began making herself a mug of black coffee, leisurely walking back towards the stairs and leaving. Curiosity got the best of him.

"Who was that?" Taehyung questioned.

"Park Sooyoung," Jimin responded.

"Park? Is she a relative of yours?"

"Tsk," Namjoon glimpsed up from doing the dishes. "That's like assuming everyone with same surname are relatives. Guess that makes you my brother, Taehyung."

"Your surname is Kim?"

"Yep, and Joohyun's is Bae while Jungkook's is Jeon."

"I knew that Jungkook's surname was 'Jeon,'" Taehyung mumbled so no one could hear him, sensing a bit of insecurity inside himself.

Suddenly, Namjoon began grabbing a jacket from the coat hanger right next to the exit and pressed a button to reveal that the exit was actually an elevator. "You heading out?" Joohyun asked.

"Yep. Suran asked me to come in early so we could get started on that project. You wanna come?" Namjoon asked.

"Can you just drop me off at the dealership? I have some stuff to do there," Joohyun informed him as she grabbed her oversized, black hoodie and joined him in the elevator before it closed behind them. The exchange was quick and they were gone before Taehyung could comprehend what they said to each other. Jimin and Jungkook were already cleaning up after they had finished eating.

"Feel free to explore the penthouse, Tae. Watch some TV or something. Also, try and avoid Jungkook and I's bedroom, 'kay? It's the first room to the right upstairs, just to let you know. And I wouldn't really try making a run using the elevator if you plan to. My bodyguards are at the bottom floor, so they'd catch you," Jimin handed his plate to Jungkook before walking off to the living room like he didn't just lowkey threaten him, and turned on the television he just invited Taehyung to watch if he wanted.

"Bodyguards...?"

For a while, Taehyung didn't know what to do so just sat at the table for a few more minutes while he finished his orange juice, appreciating the tangy flavor. It was a bit awkward and Jungkook was just standing there doing the dishes. Taehyung couldn't help but stared at his figure, still imagining him in that lingerie. He had to stop thinking about it, so Taehyung got up from his chair and decided to take up Jimin on his offer. He wanted to explore this penthouse a bit more.

Taehyung started his adventures by turning the corner and climbing up the array of stairs, bringing his way back to the long hallway. There was a total of six doors, three on each wall. Taehyung, respected Jimin's request and avoided the first room to the right. Instead, he opened the first door to the left to find another bathroom. It was probably the guest bathroom or the master bathroom? Usually master bathrooms were inside the master bedroom as well. That was more than likely the case.

The curious man proceeded down the hall, looking inside the display of different doorways. He found another guestroom and a gorgeous man cave with another huge, flat screen TV, a lot of new gen video game consoles, a computer,  fancy leather couches, a pool table, and a mini fridge filled with expensive liquor and snacks. He's never seen such luxury in real life. He's seen it on television and on the internet, but to be here seeing this and experiencing it... He was in awe.

The next two rooms Taehyung entered were what seemed to be Jimin's office and the exit to a large balcony. It shocked him to be so high up. It looked to him that they were at the top floor and the whole building was possibly 15 to 20 stories high. Jimin mentioned that his father owned this estate? The man must be loaded... Geez...

The fresh air he received from being so elevated gave him a bit of relief. But what made him even more reassured was that he could finally see where he was at. It was steep up in the sky so he got a good view of the city below him. It was still Busan that he was in, but he was disconcerted to see that he was in a completely different district. Which district? He had no clue...

He watched the cars on the street go by along with the tiny people strolling on the sidewalks. The morning wind brought pollen, dirt, and pollution so a lot of people were wearing face masks to avoid inhaling it. It was probably a good idea to head inside himself, but all he wanted to do was stare at the small people walking along, going about with their day-to-day life.

Taehyung stayed out there for a long time, observing the vehicles and the humans down below. It was possible that it had already been an hour before he sneezed and realized he should go inside especially since his hair was still damp from the shower. He exited the balcony, back into the hallway.

It was the last door the inquisitive man had to explore, placing his hand against the doorknob. Is it possible that the woman he saw earlier was in here? He did hear typing coming from the room like it was from some sort of keyboard. When he twisted open the knob, he was astonished to see that the room was a huge library. There was several bookshelves lined up with loads of books. There was even some scattered on the floor. It seemed like there was also a desk, but it was cluttered with books. Just at the brim of the tower of books, he could see the top of someone's head along with the sound of writing on a laptop or computer.

"What do you want, Jimin?" he heard a soothing, yet grumpy voice. "I told you not to bother me when I'm recovering from a hangover."

"Uh..."

She peaked up from the pile of books and her eyes widened. It was the Sooyoung girl like he had imagined. She appeared a lot different from earlier. Her hair wasn't as tangled and her eyes were now bright and weren't as swollen, resembling something fair and virtuous. They were a sweet chocolate brown and her face was quite enchanting. She was extremely dainty, to be honest, and didn't have that bad of a body.

"Oh, it's you," her voice softened. 

"Hi..."

"Hello. You're looking better compared to a few days ago. I didn't know you woke up. Namjoon or Joohyun should've told me. They weren't too hard on you, were they?"

Her delightful energy gave him more confidence to speak. "If you can say that threatening me and tying me to a chair isn't hard, then I guess not."

"Ugh..." she scoffed before coming out from behind the cluttered desk. "I'm sorry for them, they usually don't bring new people to this loft. They usually leave new people at the Park Family's warehouses or the dealership, but you were a special case. Joohyun was the one that saw you get shot and knew you supposedly. Is that true?"

"Heh... You could say that. I only learned her name recently, so it's not like we're friends."

"Well, you should be grateful to her, nonetheless. She's the one who saved you," Sooyoung informed as she crossed her arms.

"Really? I thought it was Namjoon or Jimin or someone else..."

"Nope, it was her. You should thank her later."

"I don't think she likes me very much," Taehyung explained, placing his hands in the pockets of his jeans.

"Aw, she's a stubborn one. She's probably being hard on herself because she doesn't like causing trouble for Jimin. It's rare for a stranger like you to end up so close to him. Usually Jihoon's minions take care of newcomers, but the world works in mysterious ways, I guess."

"Jihoon?"

"Park Jihoon, Jimin's father. Have you heard of him before? He owns a lot of businesses in Busan."

"Park Jihoon.... I've heard of him before, but had no idea how important he was. Jimin said he also owned his building."

"Yes, he does. It's impressive, isn't it? And I get a small bit of it, I guess. This is my humble abode," Sooyoung gestured to the library they stood in. "Hold on, I'll grab you a seat so we can chat. Is that alright with you?"

"Sure."

Sooyoung quickly left into a room that was behind her desk before bringing another wheel chair and then pushing over her own from behind the desk. "Have I introduced myself, yet?"

"It's Park Sooyoung, isn't it? The others told me," Taehyung replied as he sat down, crossing his legs and leaning back.

"Did they also tell you that I was the one that stitched up that hole in your chest?"

This utterly amazed Taehyung. "You were the one who did it? Are you- Are you a surgeon?"

"Nope... My mom was and taught me a lot of stuff. She sent me to college and everything, but ended up dropping out. I wanted to do something more involved with computers," she explained.

"And not books?"

"Ah, well... Books are more of a hobby than the type of work I do. But some of my work does involve a lot of reading so I have to stay informed."

"What do you do?"

"Hmm... I'm a hacker..."

Taehyung rose an eyebrow at this. "Do you mean a computer programmer?"

She grinned as she tapped her half-full mug of coffee. "So Jimin hasn't told you. I figured since he doesn't know you and doesn't trust you... What do you think you're doing here instead of recovering at a hospital? Why do you think you were tied up to a chair instead of being let go the moment you woke up...?"

He didn't reply, confusion hitting him.

"We're doing illegal stuff here, my dude."

"Illegal?"

"You ran into a middle of a 'gang' fight... Does that help put the pieces together?"

And it did... Everything that has been going on. The questions about the Kang 'Family.' And what this woman was telling him. "You guys are in a... gang?"

"'Gang' is what we call the people in the lower ranks that just form groups to start petty crimes that aren't organized whatsoever. Family is the term we use for groups like ours. People that have made it to the top, generation after generation and hold a say in this city. Park Jihoon is someone like that."

"Hold a say in this city?" This interested Taehyung even if it sounded alarming.

"Politics. Business. Crime."

"I still don't understand. What type of work does this Jihoon guy do?"

Sooyoung placed her mug on a stack of books next to her. "Oh, honey. You don't know much about the underground businesses, do you? You really are just a normal citizen. Park Jihoon is a famous drug lord, sweetie."

His heart skipped a beat. "A drug lord?"

"He makes millions off of the type of drugs he sells. It's a dangerous business and he's worked all the way to the top, quite literally. Park Jihoon is known well in the real world business and the underground business. And I work for him," she folded her fingers together.

"You're a hacker? What does that mean?"

"Could mean many things... Sometimes I just help him out with different emails and stocks while other times, I can earn him millions from going into a bank's system and making all of their digital money disappear. It's rare that I get to have fun like that though."

She's a fucking thief... "And the others? Jimin? Namjoon? Joohyun? Jungkook?"

Sooyoung grinned. "Jimin will eventually take his father's place once he's passed away. Namjoon manages the family's money and weapon deals. Joohyun, she gets up close and personal with the drugs we make and often is the one making them, to be honest. And damn, does she make some good cocaine," her words made Taehyung a bit unnerved for some reason. He's never been involved with drugs, much less professional drug dealers. Nevertheless, it intrigued him. "As for Jungkook... He doesn't actually work for Jihoon. He's actually just Jimin's boyfriend that lives with him. Jihoon doesn't mind him, though."

"You guys won't hurt me... will you?"

"If we wanted to hurt you, you'd already be hurt. Don't worry, unless you turn out to be a threat, there's no reason to be upset. We're still civil. You're lucky we're a higher ranked family instead of those lowlife gangs you keep hearing about on live television. If you got caught up in one of those types of gang fights, you'd probably be dead."

"Yeah..."

"So, tell me. Why did you run out into that fight and get shot?"

"I was running after a car that took my sister," he explained once more.

"Kidnapping? Joohyun did say that a car came through first before you came running. How old is your sister?"

"19 Years Old..."

"Ah... That's not good."

"What? Why?"

"Since you guys are just citizens, there's only two explanations on why she was kidnapped. Your sister either got involved with something considerably illegal recently or she is being transported into the sex trafficking world to be sold as we speak."

Suddenly, rage filled Taehyung's body, his neck heating up as his voice raised. "Sex trafficking?!? How could you even suggest that?!"

"It's the most probable explanation, dude," she grabbed her coffee to take a sip from it. "I don't think just any random kidnapper would snatch her up if they saw you with her. Sex traffickers have been around for centuries and use that type of method all the time, even with witnesses around, usually wearing masks to cover their faces. And besides, Joohyun already reported that the other family they were fighting with knew the car that drove down the alley because they didn't shoot at it. They shot at _you_ because they didn't know you. It's a difficult thing to swallow, but that's the only two explanations I can give you. If I were you, I'd hope that she only got involved with drugs or something and forgot to pay a debt. That way she probably isn't being sold already."

Taehyung could only give her a heated stare, still pissed she'd suggest a thing. But he couldn't help, but believe every word she was saying. She noticed him looking at her bitterly and sighed.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't say those things. I can be rude at times..." she frowned down at her mug. "I'm sure your sister is doing okay, wherever she is."

"Thank you..."

The room went silent after the fierce conversation. Sooyoung pushed herself off her chair and rolled it back behind her desk. "I have work to do, but you can stay and browse the library. Just don't go in that room, okay? It's... my bedroom..." She pointed to the room she brought the other chair from.

"'Kay."

"Also... I never caught your name?"

"Kim. Kim Taehyung."


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Be careful around Jimin. I wouldn't trust him if I were you..."

"You really suck at this game," Yerim muttered, chewing on a red and white peppermint stick. Her aura was light and delicate due to the faint and unrealistic feelings this day brought. It held a utopian etherealism to it, this day, and Taehyung didn't know why. He was content and held no concern for anything. The brown, fur couch he sat on was comfortable and relaxing. Whenever he moved his fingers over the joystick on his game controller, he didn't mind that he was losing drastically to his little sister. He was just happy that she had a smile on her face. Which was rare.

"Thank you, I love your encouragement," Taehyung mocked sarcastically as he moved over his game character. What a strange occurrence. And all day, he's had deja vu... He's been here before, he thought. Was it a dream or was he just insane? Nevertheless, he continued to try and focus on the game he was playing with Yerim.

Until he lost... Once again.

Yerim chuckled as she looked up at him from the floor, admiring him with her deep brown eyes that paralleled his own. Her brunette, short hair fell over her shoulders each time she moved her position, rising from the carpeted floor. "I'm bored, wanna play something else?" she asked in her young and innocent voice. She was 14 years old and still sounded like a four year old...

Taehyung leisurely began examining her exterior. A wispy flower with a touch of womanly beauty. The curves of her body were defining themselves as she grew and her bosom was obviously broadening. Her tiny waist was being hugged by some blue shorts that outlined her full-figured bottom. It felt corrupt to view his little sister in such a licentious way, but he couldn't help it... It's not like he'd actually want to touch her in any incestuous way... But perhaps that's why today felt so fictitious.

To feel the warmth of her adolescent frame on his...

Maybe if he just asked...?

He was close to opening his lips to say something, anything that could possibly make her seductive and instinctive fluids flow and possibly feel attracted to her own brother. It was a hazard he was willing to risk just to serve his teenage hormones. It's not like they had any parents around to tell them otherwise, so why not? But their reality struck them away from that pragmatic afternoon when someone they knew burst through the front door of the apartment they were living in.

"Both of you! Pack your shit now!" the man unexpectedly yelled. He was a bit older than both of them. Twenty years old to be precise while Taehyung was seventeen. The man had perspiration dripping from his hair as ragged air ripped from his lungs.

"What the hell?! Where have you been?! I've been trying to call you all day, damn it!" Taehyung said as he approached the exhausted being.

He didn't say anything, staggering over to the TV and video game console they had just been playing on before abruptly ramming his fist through the center of the screen, astonishing the two kids standing there. "They fucking found us through this. This TV ratted us out! It had a stupid tracking system installed in it when we bought it!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Taehyung asked, watching him carefully. That's when the guy sifted through the interior of the TV before he pulled out a device from the shattered screen, his hand scratched, bruised, and gory from the glass and wires. It was possible he was also burned because sparks were shooting from the broken structure as well. There sitting in this man's hand was what he just claimed. A fucking tracking machine with a microphone attached. He didn't hesitate to drop it to the floor and stomped on it until pieces of it stabbed into the rubber of the man's boot.

The guy instantly sighed in relief before glancing at the rattled teens standing in front of him, placing his hands on Taehyung's shoulders. "Listen to me, pack all of your stuff and leave with your sister! Take that emergency exit I showed you guys and don't look back. Instead of meeting me where we talked about, meet me at the gas station we all first met at instead. Okay? I'll be right behind you."

"W-Wait," Taehyung stammered. "What happened?"

The man breathed out, leaning against Taehyung in a fatigued manner. "I went back to that store we bought the TV at and the man that was working there when we bought it turned out to be some fake employee or something. He was there looking around for us as a customer and was... He was..."

"He was...?"

"It doesn't matter. All I know is that they know where the hell we're at and know what we've been saying to each other the whole time. Just please, get yourselves out of here. I promise I'll meet you, okay? Now hurry!"

~~~~

Taehyung stared up at a dot on the ceiling, watching it intently as he recalled that memory. It was during the summer of only five years ago... and it felt like it was only yesterday that he made his escape from Seoul with his sister and that man. He wish he could remember his name, but he forgot as time went on and he drifted apart from that friend of his... He helped him and his sister out a lot, but he couldn't really find him ever again. He's gone... For good.

Although... that guy wasn't the thing that was itching at the back of his mind.

It was guilt. He felt remorseful for having those ideations about his sister back then, during that day. And almost actually acting upon them. It nauseated Taehyung and made him feel so hypocritical over what he said yesterday. He got so defensive about the fact that she may be sold into sex trafficking, but he almost pulled that crap when he was younger? What a bullshitter...

He was disgruntled in himself and could only reflect on these types of memoirs. He didn't want to think or act like that anymore. All he wanted to do was find Yerim and live their life without anymore turmoil. It drained him.

All of a sudden, Taehyung heard a knock on the door of the room he was staying in that had been assigned to him.

"Who is it?" he called, his hands propped behind his head as he laid on the bed that was pushed up against the wall.

"Namjoon," the person answered. "Jimin wants to see you. He may have someone who knows what happened to your sister."

That immediately stoked his interest and he pushed himself up from the bed and began strolling swiftly towards the door, pulling it open to see Namjoon nonchalantly standing there, waiting for him. They exchanged no words as Taehyung took the lead into the the living room and to the stairs, climbing up them with a rhythmic motion until they both reached the top, finally entering Jimin's office.

Once again, Jimin didn't even try to be modest and was holding Jungkook on his lap, naturally placing pecks against his exposed chest. Jungkook was wearing a see-through white satin, button-up shirt that was fully showing his chest and explicit abs, along with tight skinny jeans that compressed his muscled thighs. If Taehyung was thinking of anything else besides wanting to learn this information about his sister, he'd probably be distracted at how magnetic Jungkook looked.

But Taehyung was urgent to learn what Jimin knew about this "someone."

"Jimin, Namjoon told me. What did you learn? I thought you weren't helping me find her?" he exploded with questions as he leaned against Jimin's mahogany desk, staring into the man's tranquil eyes.

"Calm down, Tae. I called you in here because I wanted to explain something. Take a seat," Jimin remarked, gesturing to one of the chairs in front of him. Taehyung sat down and Namjoon joined them soon after.

Jimin reached over and opened a drawer on his side of the desk, pulling out a file before placing it in front of Taehyung. "I assume you already know what I do, Tae. Sooyoung told me about the conversation you two had so you already know what I suspect happened to your sister, correct?" Taehyung twitched, but nodded as he watched Jimin open the yellow folder to reveal a lot of documents about him and Yerim. "I researched both you and your sister and found some very intriguing facts about you two. Supposedly both of your parents died when you were ten years old and she was seven years old. You guys then were adopted by your grandmother before she passed last year so you moved out and bought your own apartment together. Your sister did well in school, while you struggled and dropped out. And at the moment, you're struggling financially, only holding a job at a convenience store while your sister remains unemployed and doesn't go to college. It seems pretty normal... the one thing that really confused me though... Your parents were murdered... Weren't they?"

Taehyung's grip tightened around the armrest of the chair and he gulped, feeling dismay cut deeply into his stomach. He licked his lips slowly, experiencing everyone's eyes on him as his body language darkened.

"Y-Yes... They were..." he was finally able to spit out.

Just by looking at Taehyung, everyone knew that he was in deep distress over Jimin merely mentioning it. Namjoon and Jungkook's face turned apologetic, except for Jimin's expression. He pressed on, indifferent. "They never found the murderer, did they?"

This simply made Taehyung enraged, and he could feel his knuckles whiten when he tensed his grasp on the chair, making everyone anxious. "No, they didn't."

Everything went quiet, Jimin not daring to cross the line anymore than he already was. "I'm sorry for your loss. Anyhow... I wanted to tell you that you are safe. You're history doesn't seem abnormal to me and you're technically free to leave, like I said..."

"I am?" Taehyung looked up from his legs he was staring at.

"But... There is something else... I discussed it with Sooyoung last night. Personally, I don't like it. Just because you have a clean slate doesn't mean I trust you, Tae. You're still suspicious to me, but Sooyoung has a mind of her own and she can move me to say the least. I feel responsible in a way... For you getting shot. You were targeted because they thought you were one of us. And Sooyoung likes you. She likes the way you view things or something like that. So I guess I owe you this one thing. I'll help you," Jimin enunciated.

"Help me?"

"Yes, I'll help you find your sister since... Well, since she more than likely was captured by some enemy families of ours. And since you were caught in a line of fire directed towards us, I feel some burden there. Sooyoung, of course, was the one who helped me understand this. For now, I am going to help you look for your sister better than any police detective ever could, to be honest. And once we find her, you can go home," he declared.

"Really?"

"Yes, but I'll have to lay down a couple of rules. Since I don't trust you still, if you're ever allowed to leave this loft, you either will leave with me or my men. You can't leave alone or I will have to get rid of you and we'll call this whole prearrangement off. Also you won't be able to make any phone calls without supervision. Sooyoung would find out in a matter of seconds since she has access to every phone in this building besides mine and my fathers. Do you understand?"

Taehyung stared at Jimin's narrow eyes. "Yes. I understand."

"Good..." Jimin nodded. "But that wasn't the only thing I wanted to talk to you about. Since we now can grasp the situation... I wanted to inform you that we already have someone that may be able to help us find her. Namjoon and I plan on going to pay him a visit and to perhaps get information out of him."

"Who is he?"

Namjoon took over. "His name is Jung Hoseok. He's a stripper at a strip club down in the Haeundae-gu district. Apparently he's pretty famous, especially for his dance routine and looks. The strip club he works at is well known for prostitution, so it's likely a lot of men pay to have fun with him. Sooyoung suspects that one of the men that captured your sister visited that strip club that night and payed to see Hoseok."

"Am I allowed to come?" Taehyung requested politely.

"No," Jimin forwardly said. "Like I said... I still don't trust you so I don't know what you'll pull. For now, you'll stay here until I say otherwise or my father comes home from his business trip."

That's right... Jimin's father is the one who actually "runs the show". Maybe if he got here sooner, Taehyung would be given permission to go out and look for his sister? It dispirited him that he had to wait for them to come back, but it's not like he could take on any of these people. Perhaps he could take the women and Jungkook out... But never Jimin or Namjoon. Jimin did also warn him that there was bodyguards at the bottom of the elevator. So it was smarter to sit tight...

"Alright..." Taehyung gracelessly mumbled, but glanced back at the shorter man. "Thank you, Jimin. If it will help you gain your trust, I'll help around the house and try to stay out of your way."

"Whatever... Namjoon and I will be leaving in an hour so it will be only Sooyoung and Jungkook here. You're dismissed," Jimin waved him away with his hand, giving permission for Taehyung to stand up with Namjoon and start walking out, but Jimin stopped him like he had before. "And one more thing, Taehyung. Be grateful I'm doing this. It's uncommon I do this for people like you. Especially people who look like they have eyes of a murderer."

Taehyung blinked, feeling chills run down his spine before leaving the office after Namjoon, closing the door behind him. Namjoon had already abandoned him when Jimin had to say one more thing to him, so he was just... there. With nothing to do, but to ponder.

He felt ominous just being there in that hallway. So he went to the last door in the hall to thank the one person he felt grateful for in this whole situation. Sooyoung has done too much that he felt felonious that he hasn't even thanked her yet. He might as well help her around the library.

When Taehyung entered the room, he saw the same scene as before. Piles upon piles of books with a small head peering out once more with the sound of typing. "Sooyoung?" he called out.

That's when he saw her eyes pop up along with the interruption of keyboard sounds. "Taehyung! Welcome back," she conveyed. "Is there something I can do for you?"

Yesterday, when they finished speaking with each other, he decided to browse the books. He discovered a lot of sinister sections about drugs, sex, medicine, and gang activity, but he particularly found one book about photography and cameras. He wanted to read it again, but for now he'd like to speak with Sooyoung. He felt secure around her. She almost gave off the feeling Yerim did.

"Yes... I wanted to just speak with you," Taehyung walked over to the wheeled chair he used the day before and sat down as she rolled over with a bright smile, a mug of coffee in her hand once again.

"Ah? A chat? I could use a break from work. What is it you'd like to speak about?" Sooyoung asked, staring at him deeply. Taehyung removed his slipper from his foot and tucked his ankle under his other leg.

He parted his lips to thank her, but... the words were caught in his throat. He grinned contently. He'd wait. "Jimin and Namjoon are going to go out to find this Hoseok dude they told me about. You found this man evidently?"

"Yeah, I did... Sadly, I wasn't able to get the license plate number, but I was able to find the model of the car you were chasing."

"What model was it?"

"A Lexus RX 350. I don't know what year it is though," she responded.

Taehyung scanned the room in deep thought before glancing back at Sooyoung. "Do you have that book I was reading yesterday?"

Sooyoung casually got up and strolled over to the corner of the room with the only normal books inside this library. It took her a short second to find it, but she brought it over with her feet gliding over the wooden floor and handing it to him. "Here you are... This is the one, right? I hope you're enjoying it. It's been collecting dust for quite some time now."

"I am enjoying it... It's quite impressive."

"'The Art of Photography: An Approach to Personal Expression,' by Bruce Barnbaum. A classic. I've always respected Barnbaum for his technique in explaining the fine points of self expression and not attacking any other type of photographer's craft. His ideology and work is remarkable, isn't it?" Sooyoung clearly admired this author, making Taehyung feel a bit inclined with how she spoke about him. It was fun to always know a woman is just as passionate about something he was passionate about.

"Yes, it is."

"I'll leave you to it, then..." she beamed before going back to her work, Taehyung flipping through the pages of different pictures with an array of filters and hues. The novel absorbed him completely all hour as he sat there, fulfilled while Sooyoung typed away on her laptop. The quietness splintered when they both heard someone come in. Park Jimin.

"We're heading out- Oh, Taehyung. You're in here, too? I hope you're liking Sooyoung's overbearing amount of books," he noted as he held onto the knob of the door. Taehyung nodded awkwardly. "Anyways, Sooyoung. Namjoon and I are leaving now."

"See ya," she saluted informally. She didn't have care in the world when she waved him away, but her mood completely changed when the door closed behind him and she hopped up from her spot. "Hey, wanna know how I found that car?"

Taehyung twirled around to face her with furrowed eyebrows and watched as she beckoned to follow her, walking back to what she said was her bedroom and opening the door. He hesitantly followed her, gulping warily before he saw her disappear behind a blue plastic shower curtain at the entrance of her room. It looked pretty dark in there except for some luminous lights piercing through the plastic every now and then.

Unexpectedly, he felt a hand enclose around his wrist and immediately pulled him in to reveal that she wasn't lying. It was her indeed room and held a basic twin bed with small lantern lights hanging on the ceiling that were remarkably dim. That wasn't what caught his attention though. It was the huge set-up of lavish computers and hardware lined up behind the back wall along with more shelves with thousands of different files and folders, along with a huge bulletin board with millions of post-it notes and photos of different people. It was like some sort of detective room with a touch of some sort of stalking psychotic elements added to it.

"W-What is this...?" Taehyung bit his bottom lip.

Sooyoung groaned as she sat on a chair in front of the three PCs standing erect on the desk with loads of various types of coding appearing on the screen. "Technically you're not allowed to see this, but... I think you deserve some insight about your sister, don't you?" The man, still bewildered about the interior of her 'bedroom', commenced to look around and disregarded what she just said. "Taehyung... Please come sit down. I wanna show you something."

The woman patted to another chair beside her and he conscientiously waddled over to sit next to her. He was clueless on what to expect and felt angst bite at his midriff. This was twisted... Sooyoung relaxed and placed her chin on the palm of her hand as she began scrolling through the green colored programming she was eyeballing, before clicking back to her desktop. She clicked on a few more documents before pulling up what seemed to be some sort of CCTV footage that she saved. She pressed play and Taehyung glanced at the date the film had been recorded. Yerim's birthday that occurred only a few nights ago.

The video started with what looked to be the very same car he had trailed that night, arriving at a building with very vivid lights and welcoming signs of pretty women in lewd positions. Clearly a strip club of sorts. The vehicle sat there for many minutes before he finally witnessed the driver's side open and somebody climb out. Taehyung instantly recognized the clothes he was wearing and his figure. It was one of the same men that had assaulted him and his sister and was now entering into the club, his silhouette evaporating into the building.

Taehyung anticipated for something to happen for several moments with Sooyoung, anxiety berating him with every breathe. That's when he saw it. The window of the car rolled downwards to unveil something appalling. His body trembled at what he saw. Sitting there in the car was the other man, smoking a cigarette and blowing the exhaust outside while the very person he captured, not moments ago, was laying on his lap as he stroked her blonde hair, completely unconscious. Depressingly, Taehyung couldn't get a good look at either of their faces.

But it was them. It was definitely them. And soon after 30 more minutes or so, the other man joined them back in the car before driving off, the video cutting off there.

He was speechless to have watched what could have been the last bit of footage that his sister was ever in, alive.

"Yerim..." he whispered.

Sooyoung sighed before turning to him. "That was her, wasn't it...?"

"How do you know they visited this one stripper?" Taehyung demanded with a grunt, intertwining his hands underneath his knee.

The woman situated next to him turned back to the monitor- feeling a bit tense from Taehyung's hardened facade- and clicking on a different form to reveal what looked to be some sort of chart. "This is the main schedule for the different strippers at the bar. As you can see, it looks pretty normal, but people that are familiar with the underground prostitution ring know that the club stays open two hours longer for their regular sex clients. Jung Hoseok is the only one that works after hours on Wednesdays, the day your sister was captured. He was the only person working there, besides the manager, for these meetings."

He inhaled deeply before rising from his seat without a word. "I'm gonna go back to reading," Taehyung mumbled, passing though the room and back into the library. He was numb and aching at the same time right as he grabbed the book about photography and began glancing over it once again.

Sooyoung soon followed him back in, closing the door behind her. "We'll find them, Taehyung. We will," she reassured him before drifting back to her work.

And then... it was just them again. Floating away with their own thoughts, reflecting about how they perceived things in this world. The colors, auras, and experiences being completely different and stored inside their own universe that was held close to their hearts. This whole library was a cosmos of knowledge cut off from the rest of the universe because of how secluded it was. No windows or openings. The only two people that existed in it were Sooyoung and Taehyung.

For the next hour and a half, it commenced to be like that. Utter stillness with no interruptions. A macrocosm in just this areal room. Until it was broken.

A knock on the door and Jungkook's voice. "They're back. Jimin wants you both to come downstairs," he told them before shortly departing.

Sooyoung and Taehyung exchanged a moment, looking at each other, before they both abandoned what they were doing. They both escaped from the arrangement of books- going back into the long hall- and Sooyoung taking the lead downstairs. The scene they arrived to was Jimin standing at his dining table with Jungkook, Namjoon, and Joohyun all sitting while they waited for them. "Good, you're finally here," Jimin stated before they both joined the group.

"So what did he say?" Taehyung instantaneously questioned, urging for any sort of closure.

Jimin, whom was wearing black cap, removed it from his head to reveal his messy red hair. "Well... we did find out from this Jung Hoseok that he was visited that night, but other than that... It was pointless to go."

With an agape jaw, Taehyung crinkled his nose. "What do you mean it was pointless? Didn't you learn anything?" He sounded like a whiny baby, to be honest.

He exhaled from his nose sharply, interlacing his bold arms. "The guy refused to even speak to us. Didn't believe anything we told him about your sister unless he met you directly."

This made Taehyung's head peak up interest. "Then let me go! I can speak with him."

Jimin's face hardened as he shook his head negatively. "No, I'm not doing that. I already told you how I felt. I really don't want you outside this suite until I fully trust you, Taehyung. Do you-"

Sooyoung cut him off. "I think it's a good idea."

"What?" Joohyun retorted. "The hell it is. We don't know this guy! He could be some undercover cop for all we know."

That earned Joohyun a threatening glare from Sooyoung. "I've done enough research on the man to know that he's not going to do anything. He has nothing to lose from this, so why don't you just shut your pretty mouth for once, Joohyun?"

They were both staring into each other's souls, fighting for preeminence. It was a full-blown cat fight without any words or punches being thrown. Joohyun lost, surprisingly. "Tsk... Whatever," she pushed violently away from the table and stomped over to the living room, slamming against the couch in frustration.

She had a lot of tantrums, didn't she?

Sooyoung continued with trying to convince Jimin. "I think it's a good idea because what do you have to lose from it? No one knows that he's just a regular citizen that wandered his way into this world. If anything, they'd think Jihoon got himself some new muscle."

"Or a new plaything," Namjoon added, grabbing everyone's attention.

Jimin ran his fingers through his hair. "That's what I was thinking, too."

"If that's really the problem, then don't treat him like a damn plaything. Treat him like one of your father's men. You're going to a strip club to speak with one of the strippers there. Not some fancy dinner to show off Taehyung. Besides, Namjoon will be there with you so it won't look that strange, will it?" she encouraged.

"I don't know... When Namjoon and I went there, we were recognized by almost everyone since it's such a popular place for clandestine business men and women. Everyone across Busan are already talking about the man that ran into the middle of a gun fight and 'died'. If we show that he's still alive, Busan will take that as a whole damn threat. It's practically a public statement to reveal that one of your 'men' are still alive and healthy. Besides, the Kang Family are already riding up our ass. The last thing we need is them wanting to assassinate an innocent man for what he saw in that alley and for what he knows now," the authoritative man elaborated.

There is was... Those words again. Kang Family. "Wait... Everyone knows that I got shot? Who?"

Sooyoung gave a distraught expression. "Who cares that the Kang Family started some stupid rumors again. They're irrelevant. You of all people should know that." Those words sounded like they got under Jimin's skin, irritating the fuck out of him.

"Fine... But if something happens, you're responsible, got it?" he declared. "Namjoon grab the blindfold from the drawer. Let's try this once more, I guess..."

~~~~

The drive to this strip club was dark and the only thing he could do was use his other four senses, while he was being navigated through the streets inside Jimin's brand new 2018 Audi Q3 that he got to see before being shoved inside with a blindfold, helplessly. Namjoon apologized for having to do it, but it wasn't like Taehyung resisted. He kind of understood... He wasn't really allowed to view where he was or where they were going. All he could do was be cooperative until they found his sister.

When they reached their destination, he felt someone's hand gingerly remove the fabric from his closed eyelids, showing that Jimin was the one glaring back at him. "Here's the plan. When we go in there, you'll meet up with Hoseok and speak with no one else, but him, while learning about the man who visited him that night. Try and learn everything you can. Okay? Don't even look at anyone else and please try and stay on your best behavior. I have a reputation to keep, alright?"

He sounded like he was lecturing his five year old son who didn't know how to act properly in public settings or something. Taehyung nodded, hearing Namjoon open the vehicle's door for him, letting him step out to view the same building Sooyoung showed him in the CCTV video. The flashing neon signs shouted that it was clearly a much more luxurious place than where the average man spent his time at.

It didn't take much time before he watched his two escorts march in front of him, leading the way. The pungent and garlicky scent of kimchi reached his nose when they all neared the door to the gentleman's club, Namjoon pulling open the entrance once again for Jimin and Taehyung.

What startled him though was the figure of a huge bouncer standing right at the doorway with a scowl appearing on his face. The man was quite tall and appeared to be a colored foreigner with tight black pants and a matching shirt, squeezing his defined muscles. His hairline was rugged and needed a touch-up, but he looked pretty clean. And intimidating.

"Park Jimin, you're back so soon?" the bouncer asked in a thick accent, moving out of the way when he saw who it was. "And with a guest..."

Taehyung shivered under his acknowledgment before they all three passed him, piling into the building, and feeling the completely different environment compared to outside. The place had a lot of red and violet themes, reflective white drapes hanging over the walls with purple lights shining on them to give a luxurious feel. Some captivating music was also added to the mix. Men and women of all sorts were all reveling in the performances at the stages with unisex pole dancers, bearing their exposed skin and giving everyone else a short euphoria to enjoy and bask in. Everyone was particularly loving the piece from a male dancer hanging from a pole using only one leg, upside-down, and spinning on it leisurely like it was nothing. He was in the middle stage while there were four other stages spread out with different strippers doing their own routine.

It was a sight Taehyung had never seen before.

"Stop getting distracted. Follow me," Jimin muttered sternly in his ear before strolling ahead of him once more. Namjoon and Taehyung followed the leader until they all reached the bar where they met up with the bartender, whom was casually watching the male dancer at the main stage as well. She was drawn in by his movements and pirouettes while she washed the inside of a filthy glass, barely paying any mind to her job.

"Seungwon," Namjoon called out to her. She suddenly jumped in surprise, dropping the glass she was cleaning and allowing it to break into tiny pieces.

The woman squeaked in response. "Damn it!" she cursed. "Namjoon! What the hell are you guys doing here again? I thought Hoseok already told you that he didn't want to say anything!"

"That's not very welcoming, is it?" Jimin said as he sat down, leaning against the bar's marble surface.

"Well, you made me drop my glass, so you should expect no less, you jerks. What do you want this time? Here to harass my workers some more?" This woman was the manager of this place? She looked so young... She had to be only a few years older than Taehyung.

Jimin crossed his legs and sighed, giving off a very devious vibe like he was apart of a mystery film. "Seungwon, you know I would never harass any of your workers. You know I love them just as much as you."

The fiery bartender was crouched on the floor, listening to him with a frown on her face. "Why does that sound like a lie to me?" she questioned as she picked up the small shards with a white towelette to avoid slicing her fingers.

He grimaced. "Please don't be like that, Seungwon. All I'm doing is my job, you know that, right? I came back with the person Hoseok requested to see. We're just respecting his wishes and soon we'll be out of your hair."

Seungwon rose up from the ground, brushing the fragments into a trash can before finally speaking. "I see that," she scanned over Taehyung's body. "But you're really starting to piss me off with how many of your men visit my establishment just to pester my workers. You understand that last week, one of them left jizz all over the bathroom floor, don't you? I had to clean that up and it was pretty disgusting."

"Tsk... I'll speak with them, I promise. Just please comply with me just this instant," Jimin begged.

Seungwon pursed her lips and sighed, turning back to Taehyung. She was quite pleasant looking and had a unique type of angelic beauty. Her brunette hair was pulled back into a bun, bangs dripping down to her angular brows. She was much shorter than him and had a small frame. Her uniform she was wearing was a black high-waisted work skirt with a tucked in, button-up white top. A black bow was tied around her neck to finish off the look. The cute woman held out her hand. "My name's Son Seungwon. And you are?"

"Kim Taehyung..." he took her hand in his and they held a pretty fierce two second staring contest before letting go.

"And what? You're the one looking for your sister?" she snapped, clearly irritated by his presence. Taehyung nodded once more. "Well, then... You'll have to wait until Hoseok's routine is done then. Enjoy it while it lasts."

Taehyung had no clue what she was talking about until she pointed to the main stage at the very man whom was seducing the dozens of men and women throwing cash his way as he practically flew above them, his legs extended outwards in order to awe the audience. That was Jung Hoseok...?

His jaw dropped as he witnessed the being basically hover midair, his moves matching every beat and spike of the bass song. Hoseok would slide down at any drop, his exposed abs clenching as he grabbed at the pole like he's probably done many times before. Twirling and erotically dancing for the people in front of him, putting on a play that was simply spectacular. It was pure talent. Every dip and gesture he made, Taehyung's eyes latched onto it. Until the violin strumming from the radio faded into the distance and Hoseok ended his striking routine with slipping down the pole and landing in an exquisite split, earning a round of applause from everyone surrounding him along with bountiful amounts of money pooling onto the lit up scene and being tucked into the the lacy underwear covering his broad bulge.

Hoseok smiled at his fans and waved at them before slowly leaving from the main stage and heading to the bar, still receiving glances and grins from the other clients. Taehyung wetted his lips, still picturing the man's flexible body wrapped around the metal pillar despite the fact that Hoseok was now approaching them all.

"I see you guys are back so soon. Did you enjoy the show?" the enticing man said with a cocky smirk as Seungwon handed him a bottle of water without question. He had a heavy Jeolla dialect that stabbed Taehyung's heart. This underground world was filled with beauties, wasn't it?

"It was nice," Namjoon was first to compliment. "Do you usually have so many customers lining up?"

Hoseok rolled his eyes when he saw Namjoon bite his lip, clearly just as aroused as Taehyung was at the moment. Maybe even more than him? "Is this the 'brother' of the girl your spoke about earlier?"

"Yes, he is," Jimin replied as he stirred the straw of some fancy plum wine he was sipping on now. Probably something he received from Seungwon while Taehyung was... preoccupied.

This Hoseok sighed before looking into Taehyung's gaze. "Alright, fine... I'll speak. But only to this kid. No one else, got it? And if I think for one second that he's not telling me the truth, I'll slice his fucking throat," Hoseok commented casually as if he hadn't just threatened to murder someone. He got up from the seat and beckoned to Taehyung. "Follow me, kid."

Taehyung didn't linger, intrigued on what Hoseok had to say. Even if he was desperate and timid at the same time to be speaking with someone that literally resembled an incubus, he had to keep in mind that he was here for Yerim, and Yerim only. The pole dancer lead him through the crowd of people that were clearly envious of Taehyung and were obviously taking notice of him even though Jimin specifically told him not to draw attention. Being with Hoseok was like being with a celebrity.

They both exited off into a door that held an "Employees Only" sign to show that there was a dressing room, and many rows of doors specified with different names labeled on their surfaces. Hoseok walked forward and easily turned the knob to the very first door that was designated to him, opening it to reveal a room that was very decorative and was similar to a love hotel bedroom. A large hot tub was to the right of the room with a circular bed sitting to the left of it. The wallpaper was literal polished out rock with a gigantic television propped up against the farthest wall away from where they both stood.

Hoseok, of course, carelessly walked to what seemed to be his bed and languidly laid on top of the gray comforter, laying in a risque way to say the least. "So you're the famous kid that got shot when running into the middle of a family fight, huh?" he didn't even try to hide his dialect as he stretched his legs and relaxed on his stomach while he hugged onto a pillow. "What's your name?"

"Kim Taehyung," he introduced like before.

"That's a pretty name," Hoseok grinned. "I'm sorry to hear about your sister, Taehyung. Please, take a seat. Let's talk."

Taehyung saw no apparent chairs to sit in, but clearly knew that Hoseok was inviting him to join him on the top of the bed. This time, Taehyung was a bit averse, but eventually made his way over, leaving his feet off of the sheets and staring down at the other man in the room.

"My name's Jung Hoseok if you didn't already know that. I hear one of my clients supposedly took away your sister for sex trafficking?" he raised a brunette brow. His hair was dainty and curled with a single braid, dyed a deep red. Close to Jimin's hair color, but not as bright. His face was quite long, but held an appeal to it that was unmatched. Taehyung averted his gaze from Hoseok's ass, trying to keep his eyes focused on his face.

"Y-Yes. They did..." he swallowed.

"And?"

Taehyung sighed in defeat, his shoulder slouched. "Not gonna lie... Jimin sent me in here, expecting me to know what to ask you, but I just don't know. What can I say? The other day, I was just celebrating my sister's birthday, eating ice cream and shit and the next few days... I'm eating breakfast with a bunch of drug dealers. My life is... complicated and all I want to do is go back home. But I don't know how to begin. What the fuck do I say to you?"

Hoseok began chewing on his thumb-nail peering up at him. "That's... screwed up..." he was quiet for a bit. "You're new friends, they think your sister was kidnapped to be shipped away in the sex trafficking world. Knowing the Kang Family... That's exactly what is happening to her."

Again, that name. "Kang Family? I've been hearing about them ever since I met Jimin. Who are they?"

Hoseok rolled over onto his back, Taehyung getting a flash of his ribs jutting out from his skin. "The Kang Family... You've never heard of them? They're sex traffickers and drug dealers that have been around for generations and have built their empire in Busan. Lately, though, the Park Family has been stealing some of the districts they own and have basically started a war. That's why gang activity has increased in the last few years. They are despised and adored at the same time by a lot of people. It's rare a regular citizen finds out about this kind of work, but what you did is simply bizarre. Running into a fight between the two most powerful families of Busan? Big mistake. Especially now that practically everyone in this club knows you're alive."

"I've heard... But that's not why I'm here. The man that visited you that night. I need to know what happened."

Hoseok exhaled. "Okay... I believe you, and you're story seems legit. So I guess I have nothing to lose. That man? He was a part of the Kang Family like Jimin suspected. But I never got to see his face or learn his name. In fact, he didn't even come here to fuck me."

He flinched at how blunt this other man was. "He didn't?"

"I first thought that's what he wanted, but all he asked for was a chat. Paid me for my time and left. That's all."

"A chat? What did you guys talk about?"

"For some reason, he kept... asking me about how I was and if I was doing better than I was when I was first sold."

Taehyung's eyes widened. "Sold?"

"They were from the Kang Family... So he knew I was once trafficked for my body."

"You were once-?"

Hoseok sighed, nodding. "Yeah. I was. A lot of strippers in this part of Busan usually were... slaves to different 'masters' before being bought by Seungwon... She really is a doll and has helped a lot of people."

Seungwon, the one that had a sharp tongue and cussed a lot... She bought her strippers. "But you're still being used for sex, right? Prostitution?"

"Only the consensual workers work after hours and get extra pay for running the small prostitution rig we've got going on down here. Seungwon would never pressure us into something we didn't want to do. She's just like that," he explained. "But enough about that... The man that paid to see me, he questioned me about a lot of things. If I was doing alright, if I was happy here, and if Seungwon was treating me appropriately. It was like some sort of questions you'd ask a child that was being abused."

"That's all? And he never showed his face or revealed his name?"

"Nope... He seemed genuinely concerned about me which is weird. To be honest, I had no clue what to expect. After that, he just got up and left," Hoseok muttered.

"I see," Taehyung got up from the bed, dissatisfied with the results of this conversation. "Is there anything else you noticed about him?"

He thought for several moments before looking up at him again. "Ah... yes.. Actually... On his right wrist, there was a butterfly tattoo... Here, let me draw it for you..."

Hoseok leaned over the other side of the bed and grabbed a notepad from an end table, flipping it open. Taehyung was shocked by the man's quickness as he swiftly began drawing out every detail of the butterfly, showing a some artistic potential. This man was full of surprises.

Suddenly, he ripped the page from the sketchbook and handed to him. "This is all I can remember about him... I really hope you can find your sister."

"Thank you," he took the paper in the palm of his hand before turning on his heels and stepping towards the door.

"Taehyung," Hoseok said one last time.

"Huh?"

"Be careful around Jimin. I wouldn't trust him if I were you..."


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He didn't notice her shiver and he hurriedly aimed and shot the first bullet, it effortlessly making it's way to the very center of her spine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IVE DONE IT! I FINALLY FINISHED THE 5TH CHAPTER AFTER SO LONG! I AM SO SORRY FOR SUCH THE LONG WAIT! ME AND MY FAMILY MOVING HAS WORN ME OUT! BUT WE'RE NOW SETTLED IN! ANYWHO, ENJIY THE CHAPTER! THIS CHAPTER HAS A LOT OF DIALOGUE AND TIME SKIPS!

"A butterfly...?" Jimin muttered, staring down at the intricate drawing. But Taehyung didn't hear him.

They were there again, Taehyung, Jungkook, and Jimin all standing inside his office. Jimin was leaning over his desk, his shoulders arched in a thoughtful manner, clearly wondering to himself. Taehyung was curious about what it could be? A plan perhaps? That'd be nice considering that Taehyung was urgent to find Yerim. But even so... Taehyung's mind was wandering, as were his eyes. They were plastered to Jungkook, examining the man who was alluringly sitting on Jimin's desk like it was nothing.

A literal kitten in disguise.

Jungkook was also exchanging eye contact with Taehyung as his significant other contemplated...  _stuff_. It was a very particular eye exchange that the two held together. A very  _knowing_  exchange. Taehyung, of course, was undoubtedly confused though. Was that attraction he saw in Jungkook's gaze? Or was it a deliberate tease? Either way... Taehyung was getting very strange signals from this man playfully lounging on the table.

Taehyung swallowed slowly, still entranced by this mental scene between the two of them that has completely excluded Jimin. In fact, he had no idea that there was a meaningful stare off going on right in front of him. It felt like several minutes before Taehyung was finally able to remove his eyes from Jungkook's and absorb what else was going on. And what he saw made the tips of his ears flushed red.

For the past 10 minutes, he was speaking to Jimin about his encounter with Hoseok (of course, leaving out the details of Hoseok's last few words), and only now had realized that Jungkook was studying him indifferently. What he was wearing, was ultimately stunning. Gorgeous and flabbergasting. His hips were squeezed tightly with what looked to be a very expensive belt that laced around his, still loose, jean shorts. Fishnet leggings fell down all the way to his ankles and started up respectively right underneath his rib cage that could be seen due to the black crop-top he wore that read "Baby Boy" on it. It was truly a sight to see... Yet Taehyung couldn't help but still feel embarrassed from the look Jungkook was giving to him. What was this feeling...?

"Why do you think he chose a butterfly tattoo?" Jimin unexpectedly asked, snapping Taehyung back into reality.

"Huh?"

"Usually... People who enter any type of family or gang, they choose badass symbols to represent their status. Skulls, dragons, tears. It's a pretty shitty way to represent status, if you ask me, but that's just what people do. That's why I have none. But usually, a butterfly is seen as pitiful by many other people in this industry. It's delicate and easy to destroy. Why do you think this man chose a butterfly, Taehyung?"

This question caught him off guard, as he saw it as cryptic and almost stupid. "I-I have no idea... Maybe it means something to him?"

Jimin exhaled through his mouth before turning back to Taehyung, "That's usually the case, isn't it? Tattoos have stories most of the time... Do you have a tattoo, Taehyung?"

He pursed his lips and raised a brow. Was Jimin serious? A tattoo? That was... illegal here in South Korea. "Uh... No."

"Tsk. Didn't think so. No  _regular_  citizen like you would have one, would they?" Taehyung's lips twitched.  _What the hell was that supposed to mean?_  he thought. Jimin pivoted around and stared back at Taehyung, who was no longer looking at Jungkook even though it was still quite obvious he was undressing him with his eyes. Jimin pulled Jungkook closer by the waist, nonchalantly. "Are you sure this is all Hoseok told you?"

Taehyung tried his hardest not to glance in Jungkook's direction even though he saw Jimin trailing his fingers over the man's thighs from the corner of his eye. "Yes, sir."

Jimin hummed. "Alright, you're dismissed." Taehyung turns on his heel, urgent to leave before his groin turned warmer than it already was from the sight Jungkook was displaying, but once more... Jimin prevented him from exiting. "Tae... We should be able to find more sources this way. Thank you for being cooperative."

"Do you know when I'll be able to go home?"

"Very soon... I  _promise_."

Taehyung inclined his head before shutting the door to only be greeted by a very friendly face. "Sooyoung," he grins. She greets him back with another smile, but he swiftly notices that she seemed to be carrying a lot of books that she was taking to her office. "Oh, let me help you." He scooped up half of the reading material on the top, feeling the weight pull at his wrists. They were heavy, geez.

"T-Thank you, Taehyung. Did you have a nice discussion with Jimin? Or was it as mundane as usual?" she questions as she began walking down the corridor towards her room. He snickered under his breath but refused to say anything while they both turned into her separate library. She didn't hesitate to release the books onto the first pile she spotted, giving him permission to do the same.

She still seemed to be expecting an answer though, because she was staring at him strangely. "Uh... I guess," a flash of Jungkook's muscles appearing in his mind. Yep, there was definitely some sort of attraction there during that stare off... But why? Or was Taehyung being delusional like he always was?

Sooyoung was quiet for a second before she unexpectedly brought her hand towards Taehyung's forehead, making him flinch a bit, but he easily let her feel the surface of his skin. "How are you feeling?"

"Huh?"

"...Your gunshot wound? Does it hurt?" Something clicked in his brain and he looked down at his chest. It's like he forgot. Since he arrived here, he really hasn't felt a lot of pain coming from the area he was shot at. To be honest, it was like nothing was there. Which was a surprise, considering it was so close to so many important organs and bones.

"Nope. I feel fine. I've been taking that medicine you've given me and the pain seems completely gone," he replied. Sooyoung squinted towards him suspiciously.

"That's because I've been giving you morphine... That shit is strong as fuck... Anyways, have you had any side effects? Dry mouth, fatigue?" she asked as she began organizing the books they just sat down on their rightful shelves.

"Yeah... I guess..." he murmured.

Suddenly, she sparks her attention towards him once more. "You're so weird... You're not disturbed by this?"

"'This?'"

" _Everything_... Yeah, you seem concerned about your sister and going home... But you are extremely... careless. Almost like you're comfortable with being here. You seem totally fine that I'm injecting you with morphine every day like you've known me for years. You're also fine with Jimin, a complete stranger, blindfolding you and putting you into the back of his car. What's with that?"

He shrugged. "I haven't died yet, have I?"

Sooyoung blinked, grabbing the closest book next to her and placing it in the shelf once again. "I've seen guys like you who flip out and have extremely bad panic attacks for being here. I've seen women ten times the height of Joohyun attack her and be killed in a split second because they wouldn't cooperate like you did. No one is as...  _lenient_  about trusting strangers like you are, Taehyung. It's abnormal. Why?"

"Like I said... I haven't died yet, have I?"

She sighs. "You're ridiculous... Have you at least changed the bandages like I told you to do?"

He nodded.

"Good."

  
  


That night, Taehyung woke up because it was cold. His shivering enveloped his body as he cuddled close to his few blankets he had laying on top of him. His knees curled close to his chest in an attempt to stay warm.

To be honest, he wanted to go outside his room and mess with the thermostat for a while until he figured it out, but he knew that'd probably upset a few people in the loft at the moment. But eventually, he couldn't take it anymore. Perhaps he could knock on Sooyoung's door and ask if she had an extra blanket, but he was unsure if she'd be welcomed to the idea?

She was sort of a grump when she woke up, and he could still recall the exhausted exterior she showed every morning when she dragged herself from the library, looking for coffee to re-energize herself.

Taehyung, sluggishly, rose from the mattress and began walking to the door, reaching for the knob, ready to navigate through the dark hallways towards the stairs. But he stopped. Voices. He heard voices speaking outside. Which was weird since it was possibly around two in the morning and he  _swore_  that everyone had already gone to sleep. But it wasn't Jimin or anyone. Instead, it was none other than Joohyun and Namjoon's voices that he heard.

They lived elsewhere in the building so it was also strange to hear them sparking up a conversation this late in Jimin's house. Taehyung was curious, but not curious enough to open the door and see what they were doing, so he instead placed his ear close to the wood's chilly surface.

"...This one girl at the last party was looking at me the whole time. She was wearing that black dress with the lace in the front, blonde hair. You know her?" Namjoon slurred... He sounded either tired or drunk.

"So-Hyun?" Joohyun chuckled, something Taehyung had never heard before, so it alarmed him a bit. He brushed it off swiftly. "Yeah, she's the daughter of that K-Pop star, isn't she?"

"Yep... think she wants to screw me. I keep on getting texts from her 'nd shit," Namjoon started coughing really loudly. "Damn, this stuff is strong. Wanna uh hit?"

"No thank you," Joohyun denied. "I got work in the morning. The last thing I need is a hangover from that bull. You really need to stop taking that stuff, you've already had two close calls. Do you really want to risk it again?"

Was Namjoon high...?

"Don't even start. I already get enough lectures from Sooyoung."

"Yeah, because she's annoyed with having to waste her time on you, you know?"

"Tsk... Well, she's gonna have to put up with it I guess. I deserve it,  _you know_?"

"Deserve what?"

"Deserve being able to get high off my ass the  _right_  way. With the type of fucking shit I see every day, I deserve it. It eases my mind... I still don't understand how you can be into that masochist stuff and not pass out. You literally are disgusting, you know that right? Drinking your own blood and-"

"You're one to talk," she snapped. "You have scars from needles and crap trailing up and down your body. Half of your bloodstream is heroin and cocaine."

There was a pause. And then they began laughing in pure and utter bliss at each other's cruel jokes to each other.

Joohyun's giggles were deep and short, quite normal for a woman's laugh. And yet it was... cute, to Taehyung's amazement. He never thought he'd think that about Joohyun since she seemed so hostile to him. Namjoon's laugh was loud, and sort of obnoxious, but in a good way.

"So," Namjoon said again after the chuckling fest. "How long do you think it will be?"

"Before what?"

"Before Jimin actually finds that kid's little sister?" Taehyung flinched.

"Who knows... She's probably dead." Taehyung tightened his fists.

"Yeah, she probably is." Taehyung blinked rapidly.

"Hopefully though, she's alright. I hate seeing Jimin do this crap all the time."

"What do you mean?" Namjoon questioned.

"Bringing in new people to help when his father isn't around. He's too soft, to be honest. He shouldn't have made Sooyoung save him."

Silence. "You know it wasn't Sooyoung, Joohyun. You're the one that dragged him out of the way from being shot twice in a row. You did it because he saved you."

Silence again.

"He didn't fucking save me... It was a stupid accident and he happened to be there at the wrong time."

Oh?

He could almost hear Namjoon's doubt forming on his face. "Even if that's true... You were the one who got him into that car and drove him to Sooyoung even though she was across Busan doing a different job. You could've just left him there like you've done thousands of times to innocent-"

"Shut up already. I know what I did."

He did shut up. He shut up for a long time. But what did Namjoon mean? Joohyun saved him?

Taehyung was standing there for a long while and was tempted to go back to bed, but he heard Joohyun speak once more. "I was the one that was supposed to be shot. Not Taehyung. I was supposed to be slaughtered like a pig and bleed out in that alleyway. And Taehyung got in the middle of that and just...  _angered_  the Kang family."

"Bringing Taehyung to that club was a mistake, wasn't it?" Namjoon garbled.

"Yeah, it was."

What did they mean by that?

"It was more than just a damn meet up with that whore, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, it really was..."

~~~~

"Do you know how to shoot a gun, Taehyung?" Namjoon was asking him.

He was zoned out, gawking at nothing in particular on the table, as he was sitting down and enjoying some grapes. He was thinking about last night... What he had heard, what he had learned. It was still weird to think that Joohyun of all people was the one that pulled him out of that. He thought maybe Namjoon or Sooyoung, but he really couldn't remember if it was either of them. Maybe it was Joohyun?

"Huh?" Taehyung glanced up from his breakfast. What had Namjoon just asked him?

"I said, 'Do you know how to shoot a gun?'"

Instantly, an image flashed into Taehyung's mind.

Yeah... he knew a little bit...

When was the last time he held a gun, though? He couldn't really remember... But he did remember his first time... Not a real gun, of course. It was a fake toy one he played with. Him and his sister used to play "Cowboys and Cowgirls" when their parents were still alive.

It was... fun.

"How many bullets do you have?" Yerim asked as she sucked on her tiny thumb, chewing on the light skin around the nail every so often.

"Five... And you only get one," the eight-year-old Taehyung responded. He peered down at his sister sitting on the floor as he handed her the last bullet. "If you miss me, you know what happens."

"But that's unfair," she whined. Yes, of course, it was unfair. But what did she expect? He was the eldest after all.

He wrinkled his brows, annoyed. "Too bad. Now stand up and try to shoot me."

His demanding voice made her freeze in place for a bit before she was able to move her legs out from underneath her in a robotic manner. Taehyung was leaning against his wall in the bedroom as she walked away from him and placed her back against the opposite wall, still holding her thumb in her mouth. It was adorable, in a sloppy way...

"Now aim," Taehyung ordered with an excited sneer growing on his lips.  _Here comes the fun,_  he thought. Slowly, the delicate girl raised up her right arm, the fake gun shaking from it being sort of heavy. Not for him, of course. She just had really small arms. "Say it."

She was lethargic. They had practiced this all day. She  _should_  have it down by now. "'H-Hands up, partner. If you move, I'll shoot.'"

Taehyung scoffed. That was okay, but her voice was too quiet. He'll be tolerant for now, but she better be perfect with the next few lines. "Never!" he shouted theatrically, pulling out his own gun from his plastic holster and stepping forward slightly.

"Stop!" she squeaked before pulling the trigger, cowering from the kick. The flimsy, rubber bullet flew past his head and bounced off the wall, onto the carpeted floor. And Taehyung scowled, his exterior darkening. It wasn't even close to hitting him and she knew that she had made another fault.

She didn't even make a sound as she knew what was coming next, turning around and lifting her shirt to reveal her back, her ribs poking out due to how thin she was as a child. "Look at the sheriff, giving up so quickly! How weak! I will now kill you!"

He didn't notice her shiver and he hurriedly aimed and shot the first bullet, it effortlessly making it's way to the very center of her spine. That produced no sound from her and he assumed that it was painful because she was clamping her fists together. He grimaced.

Taehyung, once again, reloaded his gun after pulling a bullet from his pocket and pointed it towards his target, pushing the trigger back. It hit her once more, this time on her shoulder blade. He gained a low hiss from her.

He knew she probably had tears forming from her ducts by now.

"Don't cry," he reassured her. "It will be over soon."

He reloaded. And shot it, this time she squeaked pretty loudly since he had hit a sensitive part of her spine.

For sure, this time, she was crying. Why? He had no clue. It really didn't hurt that bad... She was just being a baby. It  _annoyed_  him.

He opened the barrel to his gun and placed the plastic toy in its rightful position before closing it and aiming. This time, the bullet made her collapse to the floor, to his surprise. This was the first time she's done this. He could clearly hear the cries breaking from her body. Why was she sobbing this hard? Had he said something? What was wrong?

She noticed that he had stopped and glimpsed over her shoulder, not saying a thing as they just looked at each other. He was so puzzled... They were having so much fun... She cried all the time, every day... But why did she collapse? It didn't hurt that much, did it?

He shook it off, about to let the last bullet fly when he felt the someone's hand slam into the toy and knock it out of his hand. "What the hell, Taehyung?!? What are you doing to your sister?!" his mother yelled aggressively as she towered over him. This... This was new as well.

Why was his mom scolding him?

She glimpsed over at Yerim. She was still whimpering, seated on the ground. "Oh my fucking god!? Are those bruises?! How long have you two been doing this?! I told you not to point that damn gun at people, Taehyung!" she grasped onto his cheeks, squeezing them so he'd stare into her eyes without looking away submissively.

B-But... But he did nothing wrong, did he?

"Yeah..." Taehyung replied to Namjoon. "I know a little bit."

~~~~

It's been two weeks and Taehyung was  _pissed_. He thought he'd be in his own home with his little sister by now, doing whatever like they usually did on weekends. But no... he was still here, in Jimin's loft. What the actual bird shit?!

Taehyung looked up from the sink, into the mirror, listening to the music being blasted from the living room. Another party... This seemed to occur every weekend at Jimin's place... Taehyung would have felt bad about the people living downstairs, but then he recalled that he actually  _lived_  in the loft himself. He pitied himself instead.

Damn, he pitied himself.

Truthfully, the music was giving him a headache. It wasn't even good music. Some American mumble rap bullshit or whatever. God, the things he could ignore in this apartment if only he had his phone and a pair of earbuds.

His fingers clenched around the side of the sink, his knuckles turning pale. The morphine Taehyung has been taking for his gunshot wound was wearing off for the day, to say the least. And yes, he could feel a bit of the pain in his chest, but it wasn't as bad as this headache. God, this headache!

"Kill me," he grumbled to himself.

He's had enough, pushing himself off the marble piece and walking out of the bathroom and to the exit, pulling open the door. His eyes were blinded by the strobe lights playing outside his room. The music was even more unbearable, but he pushed through into the hall. A lot of people from last time we're here, dancing and drinking and getting high. Fun...

Jimin... He had to speak with Jimin...

The suite looked a lot different with people crowding inside, just like he had noticed last time. It was way more difficult to navigate and he was casually pushing his way through the body heat and sweat. It stunck... Half of the people here smelled like booze, marijuana, body odor, or really strong perfume. There was no in between.

Finally, Taehyung was able to make it to the middle of the living room where people negligently made out on the sofas and twerked on top of the coffee table. Jimin was right in the middle, sucking on Jungkook's face like a damn pufferfish. He cringed before sighing and moving towards him.

"Jimin," he said lightly, being ignored since the music was so loud. "Jimin!"

That still didn't catch his attention. But it did catch Jungkook's, so he turned and looked up, aggravating his partner. It looked like he could have a tantrum due to the fact that Jungkook had stopped, but he finally looked to where Jungkook was staring.

"What do you want, dear?" Jungkook smiled graciously.

"I want Jimin to call off this party," Taehyung bluntly admitted. It was so quickly and loudly stated, that it caught the scrutiny of a few people around them.

"What?" Jimin questioned, raising a brow. "What do you mean?"

"I  _mean_ , I want you to call off this party," he spoke more quietly, but that didn't mean that he wasn't being watched anymore.

"And why would I do that, Tae?"

Taehyung gawked at him. "Can we talk about it somewhere else?"

Jimin glanced at Jungkook and the rest of the people peering at this exchange. "No... I think you should tell me here. It would be inappropriate as the host to leave such an event."

He says that even though he left to his room the last party to fuck Jungkook? Taehyung squinted his eyes at the challenge. "Fine..." Fine, he'll play along. "I think you should call off this party because instead of drinking and injecting yourself with filthy drugs, you should be looking for Yerim like you promised! Seriously!"

This gained a lot of glances.

"Yerim? Taehyung, I told you-"

"I don't care what the hell you told me!" Taehyung barked over the music. That was it... His skin was getting heated. "I asked for you to do this shit for me three weeks ago! I would like to please go home already, if that's okay with you, your  _majesty_!"

Jimin's expression turned hard and he sighed, letting go of Jungkook's hip and rising from the couch, grazing over Taehyung's shoulder. "Listen, let's talk about this in my office-"

"Shut the fuck up!" Taehyung growled, shoving Jimin off of him. That was it... Taehyung hissed under his breathe as he stomped off towards his room, the hushed crowd watching him, and making a silent path for him. Their eyes burned into the back of his neck...

Was Jimin even serious about what had happened to Taehyung and his sister?! Did he even fucking care?! Wasn't  _he_  the one that said it was dangerous to show that Taehyung was still alive?! Wasn't  _he_  the one that said he practically controlled half of Busan?! If that's true, why the hell hasn't he found Taehyung's sister yet?! He's done literally everything for Jimin and this is the thanks he received?! Sooyoung was right... He's been calm for far too long... Way too compliant for someone in this type of situation...

But he'd have to wait... Wait before he made his move... And he's already been strategically planning it...

It was strange though... To work out his plan... He expected Jimin or anyone else to approach him in his room that night. The one person he least expected to come speak with him was none other than Jungkook himself.

He didn't even knock on the door, just silently let it creak open on its own before stepping in with his bare feet. Taehyung was sitting on his bed, staring at Jungkook shimmy his way over towards him in a delicate fashion.

Although Taehyung didn't really suspect Jungkook to try and speak with him, he was calm and didn't really have a problem with the man walking over with only a silky robe and lace panties on. It seemed like a normality, besides the fact that his heartbeat quickened at the sight of the fabric slightly showing something poking out from underneath it. Yes, by now this seemed normal. Taehyung's gotten used to seeing Jungkook's revealing clothes... And yet he couldn't control himself from blushing.

"You shouldn't have done that, you know..." he murmured as he sat down beside Taehyung, staring at his red polished toenails.

"I've been told that a lot lately."

"Really? By who?"

Taehyung's lips turned into a thin line. "Sooyoung mostly. And maybe Jimin or Namjoon. And especially Joohyun... If I try to speak to her at all."

Jungkook smirked. "You really hate this place, don't you?"

"Sooyoung seems to think the opposite."

"Screw what Sooyoung thinks. Screw what anyone thinks. What do  _you_  think?"

Why did Jungkook come in here? Why is he asking these questions? Did Jimin send him in here? "I think... I'm irritated... I wanna go back home to my life with Yerim."

"Well, that's an obvious feeling you should have. But what about this place? How do you feel about it?"

Taehyung blinked and looked around the room they were sitting in... "It's pretty here. Extremely pretty. I've never been in a place so luxuriously decorated... It scares me and the people here, people like  _you_... They scare me, too." Why was he telling Jungkook this? Why didn't he tell this to Sooyoung? He trusts Sooyoung more than Jungkook, doesn't he? So why?

"And that's an obvious feeling, too," Jungkook finally looks up at him. Taehyung was there again. Soaring away with Jungkook in their own universe, cut off from the rest of the world. But instead of the library as it's own mini cosmos, Taehyung was floating inside of Jungkook's brown orbs. He was being sucked into them and he couldn't stop himself from being absorbed. It was pure etherealism, looking at Jungkook. Pure bliss.

These intense staredowns seemed to happen a lot lately. It _hurt_.

Jungkook parted his lips once more, to speak. "You made a mistake out there..." he whispered, Taehyung feeling his breath against his skin. The warmth radiating off of Jungkook was so transfixing. "You shouldn't have done it. And now everyone at that party knows that Jimin owes you something. That you're looking for a 'Yerim.'"

"Good..." Taehyung muttered.

They were getting closer to each other... By now, their noses were brushing up to each other. Why, Taehyung? Why?

Jungkook rose from the bed. That was it...

He didn't even say goodbye... Taehyung's breath shattered and he held it in as he stared at where Jungkook was once sitting, listening to the kid walk out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Yeah, why was he doing this? Why was he continuing to be okay with this place?

Taehyung ran his fingers through his faded, blonde hair and sighed. He waited there for several minutes, maybe even hours. But he finally rose up from the bed. He was still wearing his clothes from the previous night. Some tight blue jeans and a gray shirt that showed his carved collarbone. He hasn't taken a shower or changed since his encounter with Jimin and he was starting to feel filthy, but he refused to do anything about it when he realized that his legs were taking him outside of his room instead of the bathroom.

He didn't understand _why_ when it was possible he'd see Jimin out here. Or Jungkook. But he just needed to be anywhere else besides that room for only a second. Just a second.

He found himself standing in front of the refrigerator. Was he hungry?

No... he wasn't... But he still wanted something to fill the emptiness of that encounter just now. Usually, he'd choose music over binge eating, but he really didn't have that choice at the moment, so he reached out and touched the handle, getting ready to open it.

"Are you going to open the damn thing or continue to stand there like an idiot?" Damn it... Another person he didn't care to see at the moment.

"Good evening to you too, Joohyun," he seethed before grabbing some milk from the fridge and then grabbing some cereal from a cupboard.

Unexpectedly, he heard a huge slam come from the fridge door while he was pouring the cereal, startling him, and letting some of the crumbs scatter over the counter.

He rolled his eyes. "What is your problem this time?" She ignored him. "I asked you a qu-"

She slammed down the juice carton she received from the fridge. "Why are you still fucking here?"

"Excuse me?"

She frowned. "Why are you still staying here? If you wanna go look for your sister so badly, then why don't you do it?!"

This stunned him. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't know I was allowed to. I thought if I entered that damn elevator, I'd be shot on the spot. Isn't that the rule?"

Joohyun rolled her eyes. "You're so fucking oblivious. Jimin has way better things to deal with than your sorry ass. Every day, he goes out to deal with shit his father should be working on and the fact that you pulled that stunt today was ridiculous."

"Yeah, I know. What's your point?"

"My point is, just leave already. You're not welcomed here anymore. Not by me at least."

"Fine... I'll leave."


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "That wasn't the first time you've killed someone, was it?"
> 
> Taehyung froze. It took him a long while before he could pry open his jaw to speak. "No, it wasn't."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Welcome back! I hope you're enjoying this read! Tbh, I don't think I did that well with this chapter, but I still hope you enjoy it! SLIGHT WARNING: THERE IS SOME GORE AND VIOLENCE!

Running... Taehyung has been running for a long time. But he was never alone like this. Never alone. And now he was frightened.  _Very_  frightened.

But he had to get out of this place. There was no progression of finding his sister this way. He couldn't just sit around and wait for strangers to help him with something that started out as his problem in the first place.

It had to be his problem, right? Yerim probably pulled some bullshit she wasn't supposed to and got herself into some trouble. That's the most logical explanation, right? Sooyoung said so herself...

This was the only thing he  _could_  do at the moment, even if it resulted in his death. Would it really, though? He's been here for weeks and Jimin... no matter how resilient he may act... He's a reader. A person reader. He reads people immediately, which isn't always in Taehyung's favor, but Jimin has enough "trust" in him to at least know that Taehyung wouldn't do anything irrational... so escaping wasn't exactly what Jimin would expect, was it? That was pretty irrational, wasn't it?

This was all time-based. Everything. This escape depended on the time everyone goes to sleep, all the way to the time Taehyung gets back to the apartment. And to be honest... he was kind of running late. If he had only left last night, if only Jungkook hadn't  _approached_  him... He wouldn't be so reluctant to leave... He can still feel Jungkook's breathe on his lips...

He had to leave tonight, though. It was his only chance he'd get. And there was no turning back.

It was late...

Really late.

And Taehyung was sitting on his bed, like last night, while listening to what was occurring above his room. He was extremely attentive. He heard snoring from Jimin and Jungkook's room and the typing of a keyboard from Sooyoung's room. Luckily, Namjoon and Joohyun weren't at the loft with them.

So he only had to wait until Sooyoung fell asleep.

What time was it now? He turned and looked at the ticking clock over on the wall... 3:32 a.m.

Why was he worried about her working so late when he's literally about to leave her? Why was he worried about Jungkook approaching him like that so desperately when he's legit about to abandon him?  _Why_  did he care?

It doesn't matter anymore...

The keyboarding continued for another hour and to be honest, it was driving him crazy, along with the ticking of the clock. He endured it, playing with the laces on his shoes every-so-often just to have something to do. Boredom... It was a plague that ate away at his mind, but what else could he do besides sit there? If he fell asleep... He'd miss his chance...

It was approaching. The time Sooyoung would finally go to sleep. Right at 4:42 a.m. when she completely stopped writing, closed her laptop, and cleaned up for the night. She gathered up all of her dirty coffee mugs from her room and placed them in the kitchen sink before finally heading back to bed. He could hear all of this, even though it was mostly muffled. And then he waited a few more minutes until 4:57... It was time.

He rose up from his mattress, swiftly stretching out the kinks inside his knees and spine before sighing. The only thing he had on him was a couple of won bills and the clothes on his back. The money was all he had when he arrived here and all he'd have when he left. Truthfully, he wishes he could say goodbye to everyone and thank them for their hospitality if you could call it that, but he really couldn't. There was a mutual distaste  _and_  respect for each other. He didn't fully understand it, but it wasn't important anymore. He's leaving.

He split off from that reality, the room he was staying in, and crossed over into the kitchen, stopping for one last feel of the place. He never did get to watch television with Park Jimin like he was supposed to do when he was invited over on that  _one_  day.

It was around 5 o'clock when the security guards at the bottom of the elevator switch shifts with the other guards. In between that time period, Taehyung should be able to maneuver his way through the underground parking lot and back out to Busan to catch a bus. All those nights he'd spend watching the security cameras with Sooyoung, and sometimes with Jungkook, came in handy.

He stepped forward, pressing the button to the elevator and sighing, patiently. He was solemn, kind of. It was strange... Almost nostalgic... But why? He didn't know...

Taegyung entered the elevator when the sliding doors unlatched from each other and he swiftly turned around to surprisingly see  _him_  once more. Jungkook's figure standing next to the stairs with a frown growing on his face. Was Taehyung panicked? No...

I guess this was the closest thing he could get to a goodbye with Jungkook.

He stared at his large doe eyes one last moment before the doors closed. No, he wasn't panicked at all...

He could feel the floor shift under his feet as he watched the numbers slowly reduce, his fingers twiddling behind his back, while he waited to see his fate.  _Hopefully_ , his prediction was right.  _Hopefully_ , no guards were there.

And there wasn't.

Taehyung moved forward out into the parking lot, taking in what he was seeing. If he remembered correctly, there should be a camera right to his left. He avoided the lenses at all costs. While evading the sight of each camera, Taehyung gradually made his way through the maze of sports cars luxurious models until he was able to leave untouched, into the crisp night air. He was unsure what district he could possibly be in, but he'd find out soon enough. He'd find out where Park Jimin's suite was.

Busan, although it was still quite late, was lit up like a beacon. Lights from every skyscraper and apartment complex were still very much active. He could hear the sound of a distant train making it's approach to the colorful city before he began walking away from Jimin's empire.

It didn't take long, finding a bus stop. It didn't take long at all. Once he left the proximity of the building, he made a sharp turn and the outline of a bus stop was standing right before him. No one was there, obviously. It was just him. Again, he was waiting. This time, he played with his bangs, twisting them in front of his eyesight and sometimes tangling the strands together.

He felt vacant...

That wistfulness was washing over him once more as he yearned for the bus to arrive. He didn't know when it would come, but he was wishing it would come soon.

Depressingly, though, it came later than he expected. The sun was rising when he heard the sharp scraping of breaks on a vehicle.

"You getting on, bud?" the old bus driver asked Taehyung, who was drowsily leaning against the bus stop pole, sleep pulling at his eyelids.

He blinked awake and nodded, pooling his fingers into his pocket and pulling out a few thousand won, handing it to the bus driver. He appeared tired and grumpy, clearly not someone who enjoyed this type of work. The elder grasped onto the money tightly and grumbled before quickly starting up the engine and not giving Taehyung enough time to choose his seat, forcing him to accidentally fall into a seat right next to a woman. She was holding a baby, it's fatty cheeks taking up most of the space on it's face.

Taehyung, this woman, and this baby were the only one on the bus. "Erm... S-Sorry," he muttered as he scooted away from the woman. She looked... extremely young. Perhaps she was even a teenager? Way too young to be a mother... He pitied her. He found himself holding pity for a lot of people lately.

To be honest, he wanted to call her a pretty thing. He wanted to acknowledge her wide eyes and lightly dyed blue hair, he wanted to compliment her adorable child that she held in her arms, and to perhaps spark up a conversation. Exhaustion was pulling him in though. He couldn't make the jump to open his lips anymore.

The last thing he saw before he fell into the depths of sleep was the sign of the bus stop they were at. Park Jimin's empire was in the Dongnae-gu prefecture. Huh... Only three bus stops away from where Taehyung's apartments were.

The world is a small place...

~~~~

The woman was gone when Taehyung woke up in a stir. The bus driver was looking down at him impatiently. "Isn't this your stop, bud? Come on, I don't have all day. Get off!"

He was taken aback by the rudeness of the elderly man, but he really couldn't complain. This was this old man's show, not his. He had to leave. He checked the sign outside the bus he was sitting in. Yeonje-gu district.

The bus driver got out of Taehyung's face when he realized that he was awake and let him rise from the dusty seat he was sitting on. He bowed slightly to the driver before making his way to the front of the bus and stepping off. From here, he should be able to just walk home. It was only a block down from here. Hmm... Would there be an eviction sign on his door once he arrived? Probably so...

He probably didn't even have a job.

It didn't matter.

By now, he could see the sun casually peaking its way above the skyline. His footsteps echoed out while he walked down the sidewalk as the bus drove off ahead of him. He could see it make one final turn before it disappeared from sight, the sound slowly fading off in the distance.

Taehyung flickered his eyes towards his destination before continuing onward. The experience was spiritual and brought on its own touch of eloquence. He was euphoric in a very somber way. As he drew closer to the apartment building, he leisurely began getting an eerie feeling buzzing at the hairs on his neck. It was etching away at his stomach. And in that moment, he regretted coming back to this place even though he moved forward.

He should've stayed at the flat. Or maybe he should have stayed on that bus...?

Taehyung moved on, even though the fear bit away at his skin. He stopped in front of the door of the complex, opening it by pressing a combo into the keypad lock before pushing open the glass door and stepping inside a quiet lobby. No one could be seen, only one singular light illuminating the lobby's desk. The creepy emotion continued to nip at his heels as he walked towards yet another elevator, pressing the  _ **UP**_  button. God, why did he come back here? Why didn't he just turn around?

He  _couldn't_...

His sister wasn't going to get any help if he went back. He had to do this on his own, like he's always had to do.

The doors seperated and he stepped in, exhaling through his nose and turning around. For a second... he thought he saw a figure like he had before. But the doors closed too quickly for him to actually make anything out. God... he was still tired...

When the doors opened once again, he was greeted by a very familiar sight. He usually left for work around this time, so the lighting was obviously very... welcoming.

His sister's and his apartment was the first door to the right. Room 301.

Again, he pressed a code into a locked keypad. 2347. It was easy to recall and he could hear a click come from the wooden structure. These keypads were the only  _fancy_  and technological addition this whole building had. And yet they were still absolute crap. He's shocked the combo worked on it's first try.

Taehyung crossed the threshold of the doorframe and groaned at the sight. Just what he thought. It was empty. His furniture had been removed. Everything had been cleared out for new people to move in. Damn it... He was officially homeless.

He moved his way through the empty apartment, only having one last destination to reach. The landlord couldn't have possibly looked there, could he?

Taehyung went into the room that was formerly both his and Yerim's room and quickly turned into the open closet, falling to his knees and placing his hands over the loose floorboards. Good... They didn't check here. Using his fingernails, he pried open the wood and glanced inside.

An ancient looking backpack, the dark pink now washed down into a less-than-appealing lighter pink. It was previously Yerim's bag when she was a young teen. He opened up the zipper, a cloud of particles flowing up into the stuffy air with every touch. He coughed in response to it before peering at what was inside. He first landed his gaze on top of cans of food and bottles of water. The cans probably didn't taste as good as they probably would have when they first bought them, but it was okay. As long as he had something.

He then looked over at the change of clothes for the both of them. Winter and summer outfits. Some of these things probably didn't even fit him any longer, but it's all he had, really. The landlord probably gave away all his clothing to charity, now that he thought of it. Finally, his eyes scanned over a simple pocket knife and a burner phone. He picked up the burner cell phone and began dialing a very specific and well-known number.

"This is Busan's KNP, what's your emergency?" the operator asked.

"I'd like to report a missing person's case. Her name is Kim Yerim..."

"Alright, sir. And what is your name and address?"

He paused. "I can't tell you that..."

"Why not, sir?"

Taehyung wetted his lips as his eyes landed on the last thing in the bag. "I just can't... Her name is Kim Yerim and she is 19 years old," It was an old photo of Yerim and him. A sunny exterior while they were very young. Yerim had to be only five years old here while he was eight. He was pushing her on a swing set at a park. He rememberered this. Didn't his mother take this photo?

"She was captured while she was walking with her older brother three weeks ago on October 25th... It was a black car and there were two men. One of the men had a butterfly tattoo on his right wrist. That's all I know..."

"Okay, but sir, I really need your name. Are you in any immediate danger?"

He thought about that question, holding his breath tightly in his lungs. Was he in any immediate danger?

He batted his eyes, about to answer that question. But as if someone else already knew the answer to that question for him, he felt a blunt force come in contact with the back of his head, a deep grunt leaving his mouth. He felt his face hit the floor, his head skimming over the edge of the closet door frame. Yes, he was in immediate danger.

Pain... He felt pain where he was hit and he couldn't quite comprehend it yet until he witnessed a booted foot step up on top of his hand.

There were no words, no taunting. He just could see and feel the shoe pressing down into the bone and skin of his knuckle, possibly breaking it.

It took him a second to realize that crimson blood was leaking from his mouth due to the impact. He had bit his tongue...

The person that was stepping on him mercilessly bent down and was now staring at him. Taehyung glared upwards, straining his eyes as smoke began fogging his view. The man was holding a cigarette in his mouth, indifferently looking down at Taehyung. He wasn't taunting him with words, but rather he was mocking him with those sharp brown eyes and cigarette burning in his mouth, ash raining down onto Taehyung's cheek. It stung.

Yeah... He regretted leaving Park Jimin's empire. Park Jimin's playground. Park Jimin's  _protection_...

All he had now, though... was himself.

The man finally opened his lips and let the cigarette bounce off his face and onto the floor, sparks flying here and there. The man took his free foot and squished it, Taehyung feeling all the man's weight under the foot on top of his hand. Fuck... he could hear the bones cracking.

"You made a mistake leaving, you know..." the unfamiliar voice announced. It was gruff. Taehyung held no excess strength in his body. He was fatigued and hungry. Why the fuck did he care so badly? Why did he  _care_?!

"W-Who are you...?" Taehyung managed to voice outwards through his bitten, and now swollen, tongue.

"Doesn't matter," the man replied carelessly. He was right. Nothing mattered anymore. At least he was able to report Yerim as a missing person... Right? Yerim didn't need a pathetic brother like him anyways...

He didn't care, did he? Jungkook didn't care for Taehyung... Last night meant nothing to either of them. Sooyoung didn't care about Taehyung's company. Him spending time with her meant nothing. And everyone else there... They loathed Taehyung. He was just a nuisance, like he has always been to Yerim. His angelic sister with a rich taste.

Yeah... it wouldn't matter if he died or not.

He should've died in that alley anyway.

Taehyung thinks this even though... he found himself slowly steering his anguished fingers out from under the boot of this stranger.

It's sad that he cared... It was really sad.

But, he astonished the man hovering above him, and soon managed to swiftly rip his hand away from the shoe. The rubber grasped at some of his skin, pulling at it until it painfully tore it open, skin being peeled from his fingers. Yeah... it fucking  _hurt_ , but now he was able to grab a hold of the pocket knife from the open bckpack.

Everything was so quick, as he was able to bring the blade close to the man's bent knee, stabbing it into his flesh like it was a fat piece of pig roast, Taehyung twisting the knife for good measure. A ruptured scream erupted from the stranger's throat, Taehyung swiftly receiving a kick to the stomach from the man's other uninjured leg.

Taehyung rolled out of the way as the wailing person fell out from under his weight, collapsing due to the pain. He had punctured the some ligaments, for sure... Fuck... Blood was dripping down onto the wooden floor. A paralyzing adrenaline filled Taehyung's bowels, squeezing it until he could feel his breathe being caught in his esophogus. The blade was still in the man's knee.

He had to do something... Anything.

The wailing came in spurts and gasps, the man unable to prevent his suffering. "What the fuck!" he yelled in pure anguish. "What the fuck!! What the fuck! What the fuck!!!!"

It frightened Taehyung. He was scared of what he was witnessing... He wanted it to _end_. He didn't want this anymore. He didn't know this person, but he was petrified of _it_... He was scared of it pouncing at him. But God. He just wanted it to end.

"Sh-Shut up..." Taehyung murmured, his voice coming out like it was cracking. "Stop... Please."

The man continued to cry. Why wasn't he doing anything? Why wasn't this man fighting back? Damn... he wanted it to stop.

The cries for help commenced in waves, stabbing at Taehyung's eardrums.

"Stop..." Taehyung muttered. The man rolled over, tears streaming down his face. "Stop! Fucking stop!"

He was ignored once again.

It continued this way, until Taehyung had enough. The shreiking was making his head pound and he couldn't take it anymore. This was the person sent to assassinate him? Once more, Taehyung found himself filled with pity while he rose from the ground and climbed over the sobbing stranger.

The man whimpered and yelled underneath him, unable to function like a normal human being. This took a whole 180... Fuck... the sceaming was making his headache worse.

Finally, with Taehyung being completely pissed off with what he was hearing, he _snapped_. He unexpectedly began mirroring the sounds the man was making in a mocking manner. He screamed louder than the man. He yelled louder than the man. He whimpered louder than the man. All until he'd just shut the fuck up.

The man, finally aware of what Taehyung was doing, looked up at him with sodden eyes. It _angered_ Taehyung.

He licked his lips of irony blood before leaning down and taking ahold of the handle of the pocket knife sticking out from the kneecap of the man. He trembled under his touch before Taehyung carelessly yanked it out, receiving a whole other fest of yelling and crying. What a baby. Shit... It frustrated him.

Red liquid trickled out of the wound, the smell of metallic iron filling his nostrils.

Luckily the screaming didn't last too long as he aimed downwards, before bending over and strategically bringing the blade right into the man's skull, more liquid pooling around the wound and dripping from the sweaty man's forehead. It wasn't long before Taehyung witnessed the glimmer leave the assassin's eyes.

He had killed him...

But at least there was silence...

Sweet, _sweet_ silence.

"Taehyung...?" He looked over his shoulder.

"Jimin..."

~~~~

Taehyung was cleaning his hand, dressing the wound on his knuckle and fingers. He had already cleaned out the stinging injury on his tongue. He could have choked on the amount of blood he had spit out. There was a deep slice in the middle of the muscle now as he stared at it gradually in the bathroom mirror.

"You're so freaking dumb. On what planet does someone leave like that?" Joohyun questioned, her arms crossed over her chest.

"This planet, I guess," Taehyung jeered, placing his tongue back in its cavern.

She scoffed at him. "Do you know how easily that dude could have killed you if you hadn't had that damn pocket knife so close by?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty aware," Taehyung rolled his eyes as he turned around and leaned against the marble sink. "I don't need to be told by you."

Namjoon sighed, everyone looking over towards him attentively. "Yeah, well... She's got a point, Taehyung. The fuck were you thinking? Leaving when we clearly told you not to. It was even dangerous when we took you to the strip club, did you really think it was gonna be any safer by yourself?"

Taehyung grimaced. "Don't look at me. It was Joohyun's fucking fault."

"What the hell does that mean, ass-"

"It means exactly what you think it means," Taehyung barked. "You've wanted me out since day one. I left because you fucking told me to-"

"Oh shut the hell up, you two..." Jimin seethed. "It doesn't matter. Taehyung's learned his lesson, okay? He's got a broken hand and a damn gash on his tongue, the last thing he needs, Joohyun, is for you to be riding his dick. Why don't you two just go back into that damn room and clean up the mess, okay?"

Namjoon and Joohyun shared one last glance before they left the scene with Taehyung and Jimin being the only ones left. Jimin handed him a roll of bandages from a first aid kit that was nailed to the bathroom wall for all purposes.

Silently, Taehyung began wrapping up his bruised knuckles and fingers, hissing at the aching feeling of a fractured bone.

Jimin parted his lips. "Sooyoung's right... You're fucking insane... She told me that the day she met you... the day we all met you. You're insane. And not in a dare-devilish type of way. Just in general, you are. This? Trying to escape...? That's not like you at all. You knew that, that's why you pulled this crap, right?"

Taehyung didn't answer.

"I get it... I'm sorry..." Taehyung perked up at Jimin's words. "I shouldn't have neglected to look for your sister. To be honest, my father should have been home by now to deal with it and I really didn't expect you to stay at my loft longer than a week... So I didn't care, but... now that I see your capabilities... And understand that your intentions are pure, I'll help you. For real this time. And guessing by the fact that the man that attacked you has a butterfly tattoo on his neck. He was one of Kang's men..."

"He was?"

"Yeah... Namjoon checked..." There was a long pause, Jimin examining Taehyung's exterior. "That wasn't the first time you've killed someone, was it?"

Taehyung froze. It took him a long while before he could pry open his jaw to speak. "No, it wasn't."

"Thought so... That's why I think you're fucking insane."


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was a man, sitting inside a bathtub, staring up at it's subject with a beguiling smirk drawn on his plump lips. His pink nipples drawn to perfection as he sat in a pool of crimson blood, handprints trailing down his body in a gory mess. Taehyung could almost smell the irony liquid.
> 
> It was so... stunning.
> 
> "Jungkook..." he murmured to himself, a smile growing on his lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Ch 7 is finally posted! Not a lot happens, as it is another transitioning chapter, but we do get to see a lot of Namjoon and Taehyung interaction. I'd love it if you guys could leave some feedback down in the comments of how you're enjoying the story so far! There is slight gore and some descriptions of drugs? :)

Dongnae-gu prefecture is pretty. It's much prettier than it's neighbor, Yeonje-gu, that Taehyung lived in. It was much prettier than Seoul... Colorful with people bustling around with their busy lives. There were much higher buildings in other prefectures than there were in the Dongnae-gu district, but Taehyung could see why Jimin would want to live here. It was lively and had a lot of history.

"Park Jihoon owns all of this?" Taehyung asked as his forehead made contact with the cool glass of the car window. Vivid skyscrapers clashed with the older and historical restaurants. It clashed in a good way, though.

"He owns most of it. The actual 'owners' of the buildings just manage everything so he doesn't have to deal with all of it twenty-four-seven, you know?" Namjoon answered as he pressed down on the break in front of a red light.

He sighed and adjusted his seat position so he could lay down completely. Taehyung was tired. Very tired. He couldn't sleep at all, thinking of the noises that man had made while he died. It's funny how in this world, the  _substance_  world, it could bring you a promotion if you murdered someone. So now... here he sat right beside Kim Namjoon, for another training session.

Long story, short, Taehyung was "promoted" to one of Jimin's henchmen. What an  _honor_. Joohyun wasn't happy, of course. That day, once they got back to the penthouse, they had a huge meeting in the living room and Jimin announced that Taehyung should suddenly work for him just because he killed someone and can defend himself. To be honest, he regrets agreeing to it because Namjoon has been hammering him with training.

Every morning, Namjoon forced him to do 40 benchpresses in order to turn him into a muscle pig. He also would feed him information randomly. It was basically a memory game, something Taehyung was awful at. Fucking memory games. Who the hell came up with that idea?

Whenever Taehyung got something wrong though, he felt Namjoon's fist make itself across Taehyung's jaw or eye socket. He's surprised Namjoon hasn't shattered his teeth or orbit by this point, but damn... it fucking hurt. He's already had five blackeyes so that was amazing.

"Mr. Jihoon is the main substance provider all across Busan, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have competition. The bigger families also have some power over Busan's drug deals. Tell me what you know, Tae. Who are the two other families?" Namjoon asked as he stepped on the gas.

Great. Another quiz.

"Kang, Jung..." he saw Namjoon's fingers twitch. "And Manoban."

"Good, you didn't miss that trick question for once."

"Your trick questions are shitty."

"Is that cockiness I hear in your voice?" His voice was overly sweet and squeaky. A-aegyo?

Taehyung rolled his exhausted eyes. "If you say that ever again with that tone, I'm gonna slap your dick."

"How do you know I'm not into that?"

Taehyung's throat and stomach tightened. "Oh my fucking God..."

A chuckle left Namjoon's lips. "I'm just messing with you. Anyway, as I was saying... Seoul, Daegu, and Busan are the three main entrepreneur cities for narcotics and a lot of other illegal underground rings. Prostitution, organ donating, weapon smuggling, and much much more. Of course, these illegal rings are what built these cities. But the government hides it and says that oil, steel, and iron industries are holding up South Korea on it's back. It's all bullshit, what they teach you in school, though."

"Those industries are big, still, aren't they?"

"Yes, they're big in the  _real_  world, but in the underground world... they're mediocre and don't nearly make enough money as drugs or prostitution. This world thrives on substance abuse, violence, and sex, Tae. There's no other way to put it."

"That's fucked..." Taehyung licked his lips.

"It is," Namjoon turned the steering wheel and they began steering into a parking lot. It didn't take long to figure out that it was a car dealership. Renault Samsung Dealership? A very popular and well-known seller in Busan.

Namjoon swiftly parked in a free space and unbuckled. "Busan has an advantage over Daegu and Seoul, Taehyung. The other cities don't know that it's an advantage, but once Jihoon takes over more of the port districts, we'll be able to import and export more goods. We'll be able to smuggle things to other countries. What is  _that_  advantage that we have?"

"You literally said it. The seaports. We're near the ocean so substances can be transported in and out of Busan unnoticed."

"Good," Namjoon swung open the door to the car and stepped out, Taehyung mirroring his movements.

It was cloudy today, but still extremely beautiful. Namjoon took the lead and they soon reached the front doors of the building. It looked pretty normal. There were several cars lined up for purchase and workers in nice suits scurrying around, looking for customers to hopefully buy their product.

Namjoon navigated through the small crowd of people quietly before making his way past the main sector of the dealership and taking a turn down the hall they had entered. Namjoon quickly grabbed a ring of keys from his pocket before pushing open the door. It was normal to see a mechanic shop in a dealership, but the fact that it was locked away from the public eye was a bit strange.

"Jimin has a bad habit of buying things when his father is away," Namjoon explained. "He's already made his own stance in this world the moment he turned eighteen. Some say that the Park family is a line of geniuses, creating ways to smuggle goods in the most creative ways possible. Now, Taehyung, why do you think Jimin would invest in a car dealership of all things?"

He closed the door behind him and Taehyung took in the large mechanic shop he stood in. Enormous garage doors and tinted windows filtered out any sunlight. The sound of obnoxious tools at work echoed against the stone floors. Oil stained the concrete surfaces and workers could be seen doing their job, repairing cars and such. There was one extra thing that was out of the ordinary though...

Taehyung was clearly witnessing the workers holding pounds of saran wrapped drugs in their hands, shoving them in any type of crack or cranny inside of the cars they were "fixing". "You smuggle your drugs by putting them inside cars?"

"Bingo!" Namjoon said, placing his arm over Taehyung's shoulder. "Any and every car that is being shipped to a different country has some sort of drug crammed inside of it. It's either hidden in the engine, under the seats, inside the rim of the tires. Anywhere you can think of. The cars are still drivable as long as our men do it correctly, of course."

That was... incredible...

Taehyung felt Namjoon push the small of his back, bringing him towards another door, but was stopped by another man. "Mr. Kim?"

Namjoon faced the man speaking to them. "Chang-nam? What is it?"

"Who's this?" the man inquired as he wiped his fingers of ebony filth with a rugged rag.

Taehyung looked him up and down. He had a very average face, his work uniform tied around his waist to only reveal a discolored semi-white tanktop. It kind of disgusted him, the way the man held himself.

Why would he feel that way though?

"Ah, right. Changnam, this is Kim Taehyung. He'll be working in a new sector soon enough," Namjoon introduced. "Taehyung, this is Kwak Changnam. He's our lead mechanic here at Renault. He basically makes sure all substances are stashed correctly and which vehicles leave or not."

Changnam reached out his right hand and Taehyung graciously took it in his left, feeling the firmness of the handshake. "Nice to meet you, sir," Taehyung nodded.

Changnam nodded right back. "Which sector is he gonna be in?"

"I'm unsure yet," he replied. "But we'll be figuring that out very soon."

"Well, good luck. Joohyun is where she's usually at. Don't forget to wear a mask," Changnam informed before waving goodbye in a friendly manner and heading off back towards his job.

Namjoon placed his hand back to the small of Taehyung's back once again, pushing him forward, away from the loud tools and busy workers. "What an asshole..."

Taehyung sent him a puzzled expression. "Huh?"

"He wanted to know if you'll be taking his job or not. Whenever someone new enters this industry, everyone's suddenly at each other's throats. And the fact that everyone has already heard of you because of you getting shot is even worse. They know you're a threat to their position, possibly."

"Should I be worried?"

"Only if you're good with cars... Are you?"

"N-No."

"Good," Namjoon reached over and pulled out a white fabric mask from a tissue box attached to the wall, handing it over to him. "Put this on."

Taehyung obeyed and felt the strings of the mask pull at his ears. What was this for? It only took a few seconds before Namjoon opened the next door and revealed why. Even with the mask, Taehyung could instantly smell something burning, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was. It was a staircase leading underground, Namjoon lightly pushing Taehyung inside before closing the door behind him.

It was a drug workshop, Taehyung discovered when he reached the lower platform. There were several lab tables with hundreds of different contraptions from beakers, to Bunsen burners, to tubes of unknown liquids. He could see several rows of what looked to be marijuana plants, lights shining on them and sprinklers spraying water onto them every few minutes.

There weren't a lot of a people in there like there were up above, only four to five workers in total. And amoung them was the one and only Bae Joohyun. Here we go  _again_...

It was even more exciting that she was the first person they were approaching. She looked extremely professional, though, holding a clipboard in her hand as she wrote certain notes down, examining the plant in front of her. "How're the growths?" Namjoon questioned.

Joohyun peered up, her brown eyes quickly narrowing into slits when she saw that Taehyung was with him. "Hello, Namjoon. I see that you brought a _friend_."

"Don't worry about him. I'm just showing Tae around, no need to be so aggressive," he says while he leaned against a wall.

"Is that all?" she questioned, checking off something on the paper in front of her. "Or did you come for another fix?"

"How'd you know, baby girl?" he smirked.

Joohyun rolled her eyes, placing her clipboard on the nearest table next to her before walking over to a closed metal cabinet, opening it up, and pulling out a small baggy. "Call me that one more time and you'll be missing your toenails by tomorrow."

"Sounds like a date," Namjoon snickered as she handed him the baggy of cocaine. She scoffed before getting back to work, Namjoon stuffing the fix inside his back pocket before gesturing at the whole underground facility. "This may become your future workplace. Take it in while you can. Pretty cool, right?"

"Pretty dangerous is more like it," Taehyung muttered.

"Maybe..." Namjoon moved forward. "Just depends on whether or not you can keep your mouth shut. But there's no reason to worry. We've held this place running for over thirty years and not once has someone ratted us out to the authorities. And if they have, we've taken care of them."

"Why so few people?"

"Not enough workers. That's why I said this could possibly become your new occupation."

Joohyun piped in once more. "The day that rat works down here is the day he dies."

That instantly sent chills down Taehyung's spine. Wasn't that just a bit too harsh?

"Tsk, tsk. Don't worry, Tae. I doubt you will work here anyways. The reason there are not enough workers is because we had an accident a few months back that caused the fumes to get out of hand and killed a couple of our men."

He said it so _casually_...

"Like I said, isn't this dangerous?" Taehyung continued to push, his voice muffled through the thick mask.

He felt Namjoon's bold hand make itself across the back of his head. "Shush. This type of work is an art form, you know?"

An art form? That statement kind of made Taehyung cringe a bit due to how serious Namjoon said that. He had no room to judge though. At the end of the day, every occupant had their own art piece.

This wasn't the prettiest art form though...

Taehyung began walking around, taking in the feel of the place. He was wary to wander away from wherever Namjoon was, but the other man seemed to give him free reins, following Taehyung through the arrays of different spaces in the underground work environment. He finally came to one table in particular that caught his eye.

"Dissected fish?" Taehyung questioned, staring down at the split open specimen, it's entrails covering a simple chopping board. A single woman was working on the fish, gutting them until completely empty of any organs or bones.

"Another way to transport the drugs," Namjoon answered. "We use other means of hiding the goods besides just cars. But these are just small orders, cheaper substances. The cars go overseas while these types of orders are delivered throughout South Korea. We hide our products in skinned animals, like fish, inside game consoles, inside vegetables, and much more. It's a whole variety just to make sure we're not caught. Gotta change it up, you know?"

Taehyung peered up as the busy woman finally placed a small baggy of crystal methane inside of the fish she had just been working on. Intriguing...

He felt Namjoon's hand rest on his shoulder. "We should go now that you've seen this place, alright?" Taehyung nodded and let Namjoon take the lead. It was a very quick stay and before they knew it, they were already passing by Joohyun, going up the basement's stairs, past the mechanics, and back into the open, public eye.

Namjoon waved goodbye to a car dealer before Taehyung and he reached outside into the cool air. It looked like it could possibly rain soon, dark shapes curling around above head.

Once they made it to the car, Namjoon started up the engine, swiftly backing out of the parking lot and watching out for any pedestrians. It was silent again. A comfortable silence, the many buildings flying past Taehyung's sight while he chewed on some stray skin on his dry lips.

"I apologize," Namjoon suddenly spoke.

"For what?"

"For Joohyun... She... Can be a bitch sometimes."

Taehyung shook his head. "N-No. It's fine. It's whatever, I get it."

"Do you?"

They exchanged a glance with each other.

"Joohyun is cautious of strangers that are able to make it so close to Jimin so quickly... No one, I mean no one, has been able to enter the ranks so fast. Not like you. I mean, you've heard it a thousand times already, but I'm serious. We all ended up in that loft because we _earned_ it, not because we got shot and someone took pity on us. Even Jungkook... He had to fuck his way up to the top," Namjoon explained, raising his brows at his last sentence.

"I get that," Taehyung looked over. "But why does she hate me particularly...?"

He sighed. "Who knows... Her whole life, she's been ridiculed, told she wasn't able to do things she was good at. She's good with drugs, she knows them like the back of her palm. And people hated her for it because was unladylike. She worked upwards, each boss not giving her the pension she deserved, especially when most of the people she worked with were men. It was a misogynistic system she had lived by before Jimin came along and promoted her to Cheif Substance Provider and Organizer. He saved her and I guess she finds it unfair that you made it here without any repercussions."

Taehyung sat with that information for quite a while, unable to open his jaw to talk. It clicked. He really did understand it. "She loves him, doesn't she?"

Namjoon shifted in his seat, nodding slowly. "Yeah."

The vehicle began pulling into a new building. A much smaller one than the dealership before, him turning the key and exiting after the conversation was over. They seemed to have entered a garage meant for several different cars and they had parked near the entrance. An area meant for the injured and elderly, but Taehyung didn't think that Namjoon cared that much.

Taehyung followed Namjoon out of the car once more, making their way through a few halls of the parked cars before entering a different sector. They walk towards a mahogany desk and Namjoon rested his large hands against it, waiting for the old man behind it to respond.

For the first time, though, Taehyung realized that Namjoon had placed a small bag on top of the counter. The old man rose up from behind the counter and examined the contents inside. "Two Glocks? What model?"

"Model 19," Namjoon replied as he placed a stash of won bills on the counter, sliding it over to the man. The elder's wrinkled fingertips took ahold of the stash, gradually counting out the money.

"Head in," the man ordered, glaring towards the open archway that led to another room. It was a row of openings, small wooden blockades in front of each range. A shooting range.

Namjoon placed the bag on the surface and dug through it, handing Taehyung an object from inside. A glock, just like the man had said, a tightening knot forming at the bottom of Taehyung's stomach. Well, shit.

"You're smart. Figure it out," is all Namjoon demanded of him.

~~~~

It was easy...

Far too easy and if fucking terrified him.

Being able to pull the trigger back gave him flashbacks to those times he had with his sister. Those times he'd play with that toy gun. But there was a difference. This gun was heavier, indicating the weight of taking someone's _life_.

And now... Taehyung stood in front of something new. Not a shooting range. They had spent the rest of the day there, but now... Namjoon and he were somewhere else. Someone far less grungy. It was lovely where they were at. It matched the theme of the Dongnae-gu district.

An art museum.

"Suran," Namjoon greeted the gallery curator. She was sitting on a vintage chair, sipping on a cup of tea like a robot, staring at a mural in front of her, her eyes painted like a glimmery snow front. They seemed... dead. Intoxicated with beauty. Namjoon whispered into her ear and she finally responded, looking up at him with a swollen grin. A grin with no real emotion, pure and blissful glee. Did she even have a conscious?

The woman stood up methodically, placing the teacup down and shuffling over past the different art pieces. Portraits, drawings, sculptures, watercolor, acrylic. All types of different works. She halted in front of a large illustration that covered a whole wall, the contents astonishing Taehyung.

He trembled under the sight, his body clenching with pure lust. Fuck... It was beautiful.

The oil paint seemed to rise off the canvas, bringing it to life, the mural practically breathing. It was a man, sitting inside a bathtub, staring up at it's subject with a beguiling smirk drawn on his plump lips. His pink nipples drawn to perfection as he sat in a pool of crimson blood, handprints trailing down his body in a gory mess. Taehyung could almost smell the irony liquid.

It was so... _stunning_.

"Jungkook..." he murmured to himself, a smile growing on his lips.

Unexpectedly, he saw Suran push aside the large, ginormous painting to open up to what could only be seen as none other than a safe. A very huge one, protected from sight by the painting of _Jeon Jungkook_.

Suran entered a code into the keypad secured against the safe before the door sprawled open with a loud and rusted creak. Stacks of money, gold, and jewels could be seen from the inside, piling as high as Taehyung's chest. Shelves of different documents and folders filed against the side of the room.

"This is what the art of drugs can get you, Taehyung," Namjoon muttered into his ear. "Do you still wanna continue calling this dangerous or do wanna join the thrill?"

Yeah... this is all he wanted. He _wanted_ to join the thrill.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "If I had to describe all the things that happen in my life, if I had to choose one word... Then I would choose the word 'Efflorescence.'"
> 
> "Efflorescence?"
> 
> "It means to bloom," his voice was hoarse. "My life is still budding, Taehyung. It hasn't even started... Not when someone like you has just entered it."

They were flashes. Every time Taehyung looked at him, he could see flashes of the blood dripping down his skin in peculiar designs. It was stuck in his mind like the back of his hand. That painting... It was absolutely beautiful. And now that's all he could see everytime Jungkook entered the room. It made it even worse that he was sitting right in front of Taehyung.

Jungkook was laying down, his back arched on top of the wooden desk, his legs sprawled in a relaxed way as his head dangled off the desk. He was eyeing Taehyung just as intensely as before. It always seemed like a telepathic conversation was going on between them when this happened. They spoke through small gestures and eye blinks. And it was enough to tell each other that something was going on between them.

Was it  _right_ , though...?

The man licked his lips as his gaze landed on Jungkook's bulging length tucked neatly into his white panties. They weren't laced this time. In fact, they looked like they belonged on a five-year-old child, but they fit Jungkook's figure perfectly.

Jungkook took note of Taehyung's wandering glances and smirked devilishly.

What the hell were they doing? It was wrong, right? This was wrong especially when Jimin was standing only five feet away. This exchange, as small as it was, felt like they were being as intimate as animals fucking each other. Taehyung never knew how artistic staredowns could be until he met Jungkook. And yet he's only ever had a few conversations with him.

This feeling deep down in his chest. It made him want to...  _bite_  Jungkook.

Jimin intervened. "How's Namjoon been treating you, Taehyung?"

This is usually how all these meetings went. Jimin was silent for around twenty to thirty minutes while Taehyung and Jungkook just communicated quietly. Taehyung's learned not to break Jimin's thinking process while he was in his office. It was considered rude. And to be honest, he didn't want to upset Jimin at all after Jimin had yelled at him that one time for becoming impatient.

Speak when spoken to. That's one of the first lessons Namjoon had taught him.

"He's treated me well. We're practically best friends by now," Taehyung replied.

Jimin took a sip of his red wine as he peered out the window. "I figured you guys would become friends during these last few months. When Namjoon was training me, he helped me a lot. I hope it was the same way for you, no?"

"Yes... He has helped me a lot." Why did it seem tense in here?

"That's good. I've also noticed that your arms have become bigger," Taehyung choked on literal air at Jimin's statement. "He wasn't too hard on you with the workout sessions, was he?"

"Erm..."

Jimin chuckled. "Yeah... He's a dick when it comes to working out. Doesn't know when to let you have a break."

Taehyung didn't know what to say after that.

"And the whole system, this place? How do you feel about it? Are you comfortable?" Jimin continued.

"Yes. I'm fine with it, I guess..."

He nodded, setting down his wine glass next to Jungkook's foot on the desk. "Tae... I didn't kill you that time you tried to escape because when we found you-"

"You saw me murdering that man," Taehyung said confidently while looking Jimin directly in the eyes.

"Correct... Instantly you weren't just a boy looking for his sister. You were now a  _dangerous_  asset. People know you now. People know I have someone new assisting me. But they're just rumors," Jimin leaned against the desk. "I don't want them to be rumors anymore."

Jimin suddenly clenched his hand around the gun that had been lying beside Jungkook this whole time, Taehyung just now noticing it. He handed it out towards Taehyung. "Welcome to the Park Family, Kim Taehyung."

It was like he was knighting him or something. It was a movement that looked like it could be honorable, but with the way Jimin's tone was... He seemed so casual and careless about giving Taehyung the gun, about giving Taehyung a  _title_.

Taehyung rests his hand on the gun handle and took it from the man sitting opposite of him. It felt natural now. And it wasn't as heavy as it was before when he had first touched a gun. It was  _easy_.

He caught Jungkook smiling towards him, but didn't dare return the favor.

"Is this... trust?" Taehyung asked.

"It's my trust... I'm giving you this in hopes that you'll use it in my name."

"But why?"

"You attempted to escape because I wasn't doing anything to help you find your sister, not because I trapped you in this penthouse. I see that as... a sign of reliability, perhaps?"

Reliability...? Even though Jimin said himself that he knows Taehyung has killed other people before?

"Anyway, enough of this sappy shit. I wanted to inform you that your training is over. Congrats. Blah, blah, blah. I... assigned you to this 'team' because you are reliable. That's what I think at least. Not with money, but... with people. You're good with people, I've noticed. Not with people like Joohyun, but you've managed to basically appease everyone in and outside of this building, and I like that," Jimin took another swig of his wine. "And I'd like you, Taehyung, to become our Cheif Dealer."

Taehyung crinkled his brows. "'Cheif Dealer'?"

"Basically... You'll be the one that negotiates huge drug deals and transports. You'll be speaking with important people from all over the country. Rich CEOs, mayors, wealthy priests. Anyone that has a say in this world, you will sell and advertise for us. And if they ask for a lower price, then you deal with them however way is necessary. Understood?"

"W-What?" Taehyung blinked rapidly, trying to assess everything that just entered his ears so quickly. "Wait, I-I can't do that?"

"Yes, you can, and you will," he insisted.

Taehyung was so confused. He's only been in training for a few months and this is suddenly dropped on his head. Namjoon hadn't informed him of anything like this. The worst he expected was making small drug deals on the side of a street or something. Not with corrupt CEOs or the fucking president.

"B-But..." he let out a breath he had been keeping in. "Jimin, is that so wise? I mean... You say you trust me and that I'm reliable, but why do you think that?"

"Should I  _not_  trust you?"

"I don't know... You've said why you trust me, but it seems weird. Like this was planned from the beginning? Am I missing something?"

Jimin sighed. "No, Taehyung. I've told you. I checked your background a long time ago. I know you somehow hid your tracks. And it is sketchy, I will admit, but in this world... No one is completely trustworthy. I'm not. Jungkook's not. But in this industry, you need people to keep close. So if you don't think you can do the job, then just leave. You've had that choice for a while now, but you chose to stay. For your sister, right?"

Taehyung squinted his eyes. What a fucking manipulator. What a fucking  _snake_.

"Fine, I'll stay."

Jimin huffed out his nose and turned back to the dark skyline he could see from the window, a red sunset skimming over it. "Great answer..."

It frustrated Taehyung when Jimin used his sister as a push factor. It was lowkey blackmail and he was too afraid to see what would happen if he didn't listen to Jimin... Was this what Hoseok was talking about when he said he shouldn't trust Jimin...?

He didn't know.

"Next week, there is going to be a sex slave auction," Jimin commenced. "And it will be ran by the Kang Family."

Those words made Taehyung's frustration fade away.

"Sooyoung found out this information, I'm guessing?"

"Yes... Joohyun, you, and I will go there and infiltrate this auction and sneak your sister out if she happens to be there."

"And what if she's not?" Taehyung questioned, swallowing slowly.

Jimin didn't answer. "You're dismissed."

As shaky as Taehyung was, he jolted up from his seat, urgent to leave the room since he was still heated over Jimin using his sister as a lever. He stops once he hears Jimin smack his lips, forcing him turn back around.

"Taehyung... You should thank Sooyoung for finding this out. She barely gets any sleep these days."

And then he left, shutting the door behind him. They were flashes... Flashes that came so abruptly, but they were fast enough to see what was flashing. That painting, it was morphing inside his head and creating something... Something horrifying and euphoric at the same time...

But the flashing stopped soon after he took a step away from the door, out into the walkway and he turned left, bringing himself to a halt in front of the library. He expected the light sound of typing that usually was occurring at this time of the night. Instead... he heard snores.

Jimin wasn't wrong about her not getting any sleep, but at least she was now... Taehyung, hesitant to disturb her long needed slumber, still placed his hand on the knob and opened up. There was no head that peaked up from above the stack of books. Actually, there were no books stacked anywhere except on the cleaned shelves like they were supposed to belong.

Taehyung was astonished.

He could see Sooyoung lightly taking a nap, strands of hair pooling over her face, drool dripping down onto her finally cleared desk. So that's why she is resting... She cleaned this place head-to-toe and it exhausted her. Taehyung smiled contently, a happy feeling filling him up inside.

He instinctively let his flannel fall from his shoulder and strolled over to her side, placing it over her hunched back. Soft snores escaped her mouth. It was... the most innocent thing he's seen since he's arrived here.

"Thank you," he muttered into her ear before looking around at the shelves surrounding them. It was still so strange to see it without the clutter. It made him wonder if something was wrong...?

Taehyung stepped forward towards the first bookshelf to the left, running his fingers over the spines of the many different novels. There were so many nonfiction, narcotics, crime, informational, and anatomical books that Sooyoung owned. No fantasy, no adventures, no horror stories. Everything that she read... It had useful information she could use. And none of it was completely fun.

Some of the books Taehyung had read from this library had been either slightly entertaining or extremely boring. But he really couldn't judge her on her taste. This was her job after all. She said so herself. She has to know this stuff...

He gazed over his shoulder one last time to see if she was still asleep before he commenced on browsing. It must've been several minutes of pure nothingness before he had realized that he got to the last shelf right behind Sooyoung's desk, his eyes landing on a single book that seemed at least a bit more colorful and vivid than the rest of the reading material here.

He slid it out from the wooden platform and read the title graciously. "INTO THE MAGIC SHOP: A Neurosurgeon's True Story Of The Life Changing Magic Of Compassion And Mindfulness." The author's name was James R Doly. The cover revealed a bright blue illustrated light streaming from the opening of a doorway. Sparkling dots that could only be represented as stars scattered around said door.

Taehyung had learned never to judge a book by its cover. He learned it quite regularly and people tended to preach such words on a constant basis. He understood it for the most part. He knew not to judge people based on appearance, but it was hard to do so when it came to actual books. Especially when it came to this type of library that rarely held a book with covers that weren't just plain brown, black, or red colors. The fact that he found a novel with an intriguing design automatically propelled him to read it.

Carefully, Taehyung rounded himself away from where Sooyoung was sitting and plopped his butt onto the floor, too lazy to go find an actual seat in Sooyoung's bedroom. He flipped to the first page, the first sentence making his skin crawl immediately just as much as it interested him.

"There's a certain sound the scalp makes when it's being ripped off of a skull- like a large piece of Velcro tearing away from its source."

~~~~

The morning sunlight dripped in from under the door's crevice, biting at Taehyung's toes. He had been reading all night and now it was extremely early, the type of early where the city folk still were sleeping.

And Sooyoung was one of those people, light snores escaping her mouth in rhythmic motion. This book, although he had been reading it all morning... He didn't get to finish, sadly. His exhaustion was consuming his body, making his lids dip down every time he attempted to look at another word or letter.

He knew that he'd be dead asleep in only a few seconds... He just had to wait though...

But the door opened, creaking slowly to let in a full wave of the morning glory sunrise, a figure blocking its ultimate strength. Taehyung blinked rapidly, trying to adjust his eyes to the stinging rays.

He wasn't able to fully make out who it was until the person floated over elegantly on their tippy-toes and bent down to Taehyung's height, who was now leaning against one the shelves in awe. Jungkook... Of course, it was Jungkook.

And of course, he greeted Taehyung with that half-bunny smile, raising up a single index finger to reveal something resting on it. "Look what I found on the balcony," he cooed, a glimmer flashing in his eyes.

Taehyung parted his lips examining the marvelous creature that Jungkook had found. "A butterfly..."  he whispered.

The insect expanded its wings, revealing it's fascinating colors of blue and turquoise, black lines enchanting the vivid hues. Taehyung delicately brought out his own index fingers, cautiously cupping it under the butterfly's legs to let it change who was holding it. Jungkook's grin expanded when he saw Taehyung holding it.

"I found him outside on the balcony... Not a lot of bugs are in the city, but he must be flying south for the winter," he explained.

"I guess so."

Time passed silently, this time between the two being cherished quietly and gratefully. Unexpectantly, though, the wind from the balcony picked up and a strong breeze blew in, hitting the butterfly's wings. The beautiful creature flew in response and began making its way through the room, Jungkook and Taehyung watching it in amazement like it was something out of a movie. Soon enough, it crossed its way through the hall, and parted back to outside due to the open balcony doors.

Jungkook started laughing buoyantly, happy as ever. "That was...  _enchanting_ , wasn't it?"

Taehyung nodded. "A lot of enchanting things seem to happen around you, don't they?"

He crinkled his brows. "I wouldn't call them enchanting."

Was he offended by that? "What would you call it then?"

He was quiet for a bit, thinking to himself. "If I had to describe all the things that happen in my life, if I had to choose _one_ word... Then I would choose the word 'Efflorescence.'"

"Efflorescence?"

Jungkook tilted his head, a smirk curling on his swollen lips.  His messy hair pooled down over his eyebrows. As he stretched out his neck more, Taehyung could see the slight exposure of what looked like none other than a deep, purple bruise. In fact, bruises could be seen decorating his pale skin on his bare legs as well. Who did this to him?

"It means to bloom," his voice was hoarse. "My life is still budding, Taehyung. It hasn't even started... Not when someone like you has just entered it."

What did that mean? What did _any_ of this mean?

He hated it. He hated those bruises...

He wanted to get rid of them...

But as if this world couldn't interrupt him any more than it already has been doing... He heard a loud dinging. An obnoxious one that rang throughout the whole entire penthouse, grabbing the attention of Jungkook and the now-clearly-awake Sooyoung.

A string of drool could be seen trailing from Sooyoung's cheek as she sat up, drowsiness clouding her vision. She started to blink rapidly and looked around, obviously taken aback from what had woken her.

Taehyung didn't even know there was a doorbell that went to this penthouse, but it made sense, he guessed. No one said a single word when the sound of hammering footsteps could be heard emerging from the stairs.

Suddenly, a sliding and shirtless Namjoon could be seen stopping in front of the doorway, trying to regain his balance before he fell. His wavy hair bouncing with each movement before he could stand steadily. "Fuck!" he cursed. "Shit!"

"W-What?" Jungkook looked at him before Joohyun soon made her entrance by walking behind Namjoon. "What's going on? Who's here?"

"A fucking police officer," Joohyun answered, her hair held in a messy bun, a large t-shirt going past her thighs like a nightgown.

"What do you mean a police officer?" Sooyoung questioned, finally being fully awake despite the fact that she hasn't had coffee yet. Namjoon made his way over to Sooyoung's bedroom door, ignoring Sooyoung's question and swiftly stepped inside, gliding over to her computer quickly. Taehyung could see from here that he was clicking on a few documents before he pulled up the CTV view of the whole fucking apartment. Every room had a camera in it except the bedrooms and bathrooms.

Sooyoung rose from her seat, grumbling while she and everyone else followed Namjoon's lead, Taehyung leaving behind his book and helping Jungkook up from the ground. It was dim, as per usual, in her room when they entered.

Taehyung took a deep breathe as he watched Sooyoung push past Namjoon's large shoulders in order to see for herself what the hell was happening. It didn't take long for her to start cursing up a storm as well.

She walked past the others once more and ran over to the library's entrance, turning off the lights and closing the door before beckoning Namjoon and Taehyung over. "Help me move this shelf in front of the door, quickly," she hissed.

They both didn't dare question her, wrapping both of their fingers around the wooden structure and lifting it up using teamwork. Taehyung's muscles cramped under the weight, slowly bringing it back with Namjoon's help. A few of the books on top of the shelves began to topple down and make a lot of noise, but Sooyoung dismissed them and urged them to hurry up.

Taehyung and Namjoon were careful not to get their fingers or toes caught, settling the shelf right in front of the bedroom door. He sighed in relief, closing the door behind the shelf.

Namjoon gave him a nod before they both headed back to the group crowding around the monitor, and watching what looked to be a moving photo of the kitchen downstairs. Jimin could be seen standing in front of the elevator, waiting patiently, his fingers twiddling behind his back.

"Why is a pol-" Taehyung began to ask, but Sooyoung shushed him quiet.

They all had their eyes glued to the screen, shocked when they all saw the doors to the elevator slide open. Joohyun had told the truth. It was a full blown cop, all dressed in uniform. He was quite handsome, deep black hair dripping down from his hat, and his uniform squeezing his body just right. The man held a deep jawline and strong eyebrows.

Jimin finally spoke. "Good morning, officer. Does there seem to be a problem?"

"Hello, sir. Sorry to wake you so early in the morning. Do you happen to be the owner of this lot, Park Jihoon?" the cop questioned.

Jimin shook his head. "No, sir. I'm his son, Park Jimin. My father is currently on a business trip in Seoul." Everything seemed to be quite formal.

"Ah, I see," the officer flipped out his badge showing it to the younger man. "Officer Kim Seokjin. I came here on duty due to some recent domestic disturbance reports from the other residents in this building. I was just checking to see if everything is alright... Do you mind if I have a look inside?"

"No, not at all," Jimin welcomed, stepping aside for the cop.

Seokjin peered around at the interior of the kitchen, admiring its vastness. "Your father owns a nice estate here, I see."

"Thank you. It will soon be mine, to be honest," Jimin said in an almost condescending way.

"Is that so? That's a big responsibility. I hope it's not too hard of a job to own something so large," Seokjin smiled towards Jimin. Jimin didn't respond, giving him the cold shoulder and forcing Seokjin to have to walk forward, away from the awkwardness.

The officer began scurrying around, looking at the decorations and many paintings on the walls. "Can I get you a glass of water or anything?" Jimin offered.

"A glass of water will be fine, thank you," Seokjin replied as he stepped into the living room. Jimin seemed extremely disturbed that the officer actually wanted something, almost stomping his way over to a cupboard and grabbing a glass before pouring tap water in it from the sink. Wow... Petty much?

Jimin, a few seconds later, brought the drink to the cop. He took it gratefully and took a sip, thanking Jimin once more. "Such a pretty view," Seokjin complimented.

"Thank you."

The people watching this scene play out on the screen realized how fucking awkward the atmosphere was getting for these two complete strangers. So _fucking_ awkward.

A snicker escaped Jungkook's mouth, Taehyung smirking back towards him in amusement until they heard Seokjin's voice once more.

"So do you and a lot of friends have parties here while your father's gone?" Seokjin questioned. He and Jimin were now... standing right in front of Taehyung's room, making him shiver. Seokjin reached out and placed his hand over the doorknob and turned it, opening it up.

We all expected for the man to walk further inside the room, to snoop around more than he already was, but all he simply did was glance inside before shutting the door once again. Jimin was just as tense, if not more, as everyone else watching this segment play out.

"Yes, I guess you could say that," Jimin finally replied.

The cop grinned, before pressing his right foot on the first step. "Alcohol I'm guessing?"

"Yes, sir."

Seokjin commenced with the climb upstairs, everyone transitioning views to the hallway camera view. "That's reasonable. You are... what? In your early twenties? As long as you're not underage."

He continued to peer into the many different rooms and such, barely stepping inside, as if he was looking for something important. Something specific. Jimin could clearly be seen watching him attentively.

Seokjin spoke again once he got to the bathroom and peered inside. "Well, Park Jimin, it's apart of my job to inform you that you've gotta start being a bit quieter if it is partying disturbing the peace of the others living here. It doesn't matter if your father does own this estate, the fact is people deserve peace and quiet, understood?"

What a prick. "Yes, sir."

"Good to hear," Seokjin looked into the next room, not appearing that impressed. "So Jimin... I'm sure you've heard of the recent gun shootings in the area. Have you not? It's dangerous out there these days."

"No, officer. What gun shootings?" Jimin questioned, lying his teeth off.

"You must not watch the news often then. Just more gang activity than usual lately. Not only that, but there has been a lot of missing people as well," Taehyung flinched at Seokjin's words.

"Missing people?"

"Yes, people ranging from thirteen to their early twenties. Both male and female," he responded. Suddenly, he halted in front of Sooyoung's library door. Everyone held their breath, watching the screen. "Say, Jimin... Have you seen anyone with blonde hair lately? Dyed blonde?"

Taehyung's stomach tightened. "W-Why do you ask?"

"A few months back, a man named Kim Taehyung and his little sister, Kim Yerim seemed to go missing on the girl's birthday. Do those... names seem familiar to you?"

Missing...? _Taehyung_ was a missing person's case...?

"No, officer," Jimin began as Seokjin started reaching for the knob to the library's door. "I don't know of anyone by that name."

Seokjin stopped. "Really? Too bad," he sighed. "Sorry to disturb you, once again. I really should get going now since everything looks in order."

"Really? So soon? You haven't even finished your glass of water," Jimin pointed out.

Officer Kim Seokjin seemed so urgent to leave... "N-No, no. I've annoyed you long enough. I should really get-"

It was so fucking stupid, but Taehyung... his arm bumped one of the decorations on Sooyoung's desk, making it fall down onto the floor. A huge clank could be heard echoing throughout the room. Everyone eyed him, frightened to death. The cop definitely heard that. Damn it...

"What was that?" Seokjin questioned, looking back at the library.

"What was what?" Jimin asked back, a nervousness hitching his breath.

Seokjin squinted his gaze. "I swear I heard something from that room..." He pointed to the door.

"No one's here beside me, sir. Weren't you leaving?"

"May I look in there?" Seokjin demanded almost.

Jimin stepped out of the officer's way, giving him permission to do so. God damn it... The cop stepped past him and slowly opened the library's door, everyone hearing it without the monitor's help. That triggered Sooyoung to instantly turn off the audio while everyone held their breath.

Taehyung could hear the cop step in. But _why_ were they hiding?

Seokjin turned on the light switch, a glow streaming in from under the shelf blocking the entrance. Fuck... All everyone could hear was his booted footsteps before he finally stopped right in front of the wooden structure that was hiding the bedroom door from sight.

"That's a weird place for a bookshelf..." his voice echoed through the walls.

"Eh," Jimin calmly responded. "My father likes weird things."

"Hmm."

And that was it... The cop didn't stop to examine the shelf more thoroughly. He gave it one last look before walking out the door and letting Jimin follow him, everyone releasing deep sighs of relief.

Even if that was as crazy as it was... He couldn't keep those damn words out of his head. Taehyung and Yerim were missing peoples cases.

It baffled him, that he was now a missing person.

Yes, it did relieve him that his sister was now being looked for by the authorities, but what puzzled him was that _he_ was now being looked for.

"It's not the first time," he whispered to himself so no one else could hear.

No, it wasn't the first time he's been considered a missing person...

"Done," he remembered his old friend had said before turning back to him. "Alright type in your real name and do it how I showed you, okay?"

The much more nervous Taehyung nodded trading spots with his friend. The man turned around, making sure he was unable to view the screen of the laptop while Yerim had a full sight of it.

Taehyung licked his lips anxiously as he began typing in his full name and hitting enter. The words 'KIM TAEHYUNG' appeared on the screen. Pages and pages of different files and documents began popping up on the screen. All the way to his birth certificate to his very last school grade. This made him gulp.

Was he really about to erase who he was as a person...?

He pressed delete, his fingers trembling...

And soon, the screen went blank of all the information that held any worth about him...

Then the started typing.

It must've taken hours before he was able to fill out every bit of new information that wasn't true about himself. A new date of birth and new grades. The only thing he didn't change was his name. It was still Kim Taehyung... He had to keep it that way...

He pressed enter one last time and the sound of what could only be the printer went off...

His friend brought over a small file of papers and a card. "Congrats... You're no longer a 15-year-old Kim Taehyung. You're an 18-year-old Kim Taehyung that works at a convenience store... Now... Time for your sister."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kim Seokjin has entered the arena!
> 
> Make sure leave kudos and a comment! :)


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I bet," Jungkook says. "That the bee stung you because your lips taste like honey."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: ....Uh, there's masturbation in this chapter sksksk

"The hell you mean you called the police?!" Joohyun snapped, her feet storming right behind Taehyung as he ran down the stairs in order to meet up with Jimin, who was now sitting at the large kitchen table with a contemplative expression.

Huffed breathes came from Taehyung's lungs as he turned the corner into the dining room. Joohyun and everyone else were all following his lead. After the whole incident with Kim Seokjin, he had openly admitted that he had used a burner cellphone at his apartment to contact the police before he was abruptly attacked. Joohyun, who was always jumping on his ass about this type of shit, was now attacking him with insults and questions.

Taehyung stopped in front of the dining table. "I did it because I wanted the police searching for my sister. I had no intention to expose any of you guys in the first place."

"That doesn't fucking matter," Joohyun barked. "You didn't hang up before that man attacked you. That operator could have heard everything. They could've heard our conversations and the whole fight. That's why the police officer probably came!"

"How do you know that? The police officer came because of domestic disturbance reports, not because of a suspicious phone call! Besides, it was a burner cell phone and it's still possibly at my apartment," Taehyung explained sternly.

"Possibly? So you're telling me you don't even know what happened to it?!"

"Maybe the guy's body fell on top of it?! I don't fucking know, Joohyun. Okay?"

Jimin finally spoke up, rising from his seat and walking over to the coffee maker, bringing out a mug and pouring the black liquid into it. "Will you two shut up for once? It doesn't fucking matter that he called the police, Joohyun. It was a burner phone, you heard it yourself. Besides, that's not why he came."

"Why did he come then?" Sooyoung questioned.

Jimin's shoulders arched and he pursed his lips. "I think... he knows that Taehyung's here."

Everyone grew quiet. It was mindboggling. So the news of Taehyung entering this world has already reached people like Seokjin?

"How would a police officer know about him? Is he a corrupt cop?" Joohyun asked skeptically.

"I don't know... Sooyoung," Jimin turned to her. "Research Officer Kim Seokjin and collect as much information as you can about him. Everyone else, I want you to go back to doing your daily duties, but keep an eye out for anything suspicious... And as for Taehyung... I was going to send you out on your first assignment today, but I've decided against it. I think it's better if you stay put for a few more days until we've assessed who Kim Seokjin really is. Got it?"

Everybody nodded in response to Jimin's orders and gradually things began going back to normal. Joohyun and Namjoon started discussing things and getting ready for work before heading out, Sooyoung grabbed a mug of creamed coffee and headed back to her office, Jungkook and Jimin decided to hang out in the kitchen, eating breakfast and such. Yeah... everything was back to normal in a matter of a few minutes, but it was still clearly tense.

Taehyung commenced rummaging through the things that have been happening to him for the past few days. A 'promotion', these small gestures between him and Jungkook, and now... the authorities were looking for him?

It gave him a strange sense of fear. Anxiety, maybe?

The promotion, as unexpected as it was, he was glad that he got it. He was glad that it was even an option. To be honest, he really didn't wanna spend the rest of his days looking for his sister while doing nothing. That's why he tried to escape in the first place because he never thought he'd never get anything done by just speaking with these very few people every single day, anticipating whether they found something or not.

Yes, he hated the idea of having to communicate with people himself. Jimin says it was his thing but was it really? He'd be lying if he said that he hasn't made a few enemies in the past- Joohyun being an example of that- but it still felt _weird_. Selling drugs on the street was one thing, but selling them to possible corporations or important figures in this world was a heavy responsibility. And to make him Cheif Dealer, or rather "Cheif _Distributor_ ", made him feel the pressure most indefinitely.

It was unavoidable, though. Taehyung saw it, he knew it. Jimin... He's this alpha type figure. When he wants something, he'll get it. Taehyung can't even imagine what his father is gonna be like once he meets him. And if Jimin wants Taehyung to work as a distributor of his products, then that's what he'll get, because Jimin already had Taehyung in the palm of his hand the moment Taehyung got shot.

It fucking sucked, but it is what it is...

Now as for Jungkook... Jungkook is a special specimen.

Taehyung doesn't know how to read him, how to communicate with him, or how to even look at him without feeling... something. _Lust_ , it was most definitely lust. Taehyung will admit it. Jungkook is fucking sexy. A whole ass meal in one body, and damn... he wouldn't mind tasting him.

But there was something else that Taehyung felt towards Jungkook and he couldn't quite determine what the hell it was.

Solemness? Nostalgia? Sympathy? Or perhaps... An overprotectiveness?

Was it because he saw those bruises on his neck and legs?

What were they from?

Taehyung found himself climbing the stairs to the hallway, looking for some sort of escape from reality. Something that could help him think better than he was now, with just standing inside the kitchen. He had no interest to disturb Sooyoung, only glancing inside her library to see that she must've been inside her office, researching who Kim Seokjin actually was. The bookshelf was still angled a strange way, from everyone leaving it in a hurry, books scattered here and there.

He turned to the balcony door that was still open, the cool air brushing over his melanin skin. It was warmer than usual, despite the fact that winter was coming. That's probably the reason Jungkook was able to find that butterfly this morning.

Taehyung leaned against the balcony's glass railing, his arms crossing, and his fingers itching at the small hair follicles on his skin.

"Kim Seokjin..." he muttered to himself.

Was he a real cop or not?

If he was, then the explanation he gave for coming to Jimin's loft did make sense, but why did he have to look around? Why did he have to look in every room like he knew _something_? Especially when he didn't have any search warrant, which was extremely sketchy.

Taehyung was no genius. He knew that, but it didn't take rocket science for Taehyung and everyone else to see that this Seokjin man was up to something even if he was a real cop or not.

Jimin even pointed out that he more than likely knew that Kim Taehyung was living there at this moment, right?

And if Seokjin did know that... Is it possible he also knows the whereabouts of Yerim?

Taehyung perked up his head at this thought.

Fuck...

The turmoil that repeated in his mind started to simmer down when he heard the inevitable sound of a bug... Another one?

Transfixed by where the buzzing was coming from, he peered over his shoulder to see none other than a flying honey bee, floating around with its small wings and fuzzy yellow and black body. A small bit of fear nipped at his stomach, making him step away from the obnoxious insect.

He didn't mind bugs, but this bee seemed insistent to bother him, following the movement of his face.

Suddenly, the insect flew forward, landing itself right on Taehyung's lip, surprising him when he felt none other than the sensation of a string, radiating through his lip.

"Shit," he hissed, bringing his hand up and swatting the annoying bug away. The bee fell from the smack, obviously deceased from stinging him since the bee's stinger was barbed, sticking inside Taehyung's skin.

He swiftly wedged it out, flinching at every sense of pain. "What the hell did I ever do to you?" Taehyung asked the dead bee. "Was that really worth your life?"

Taehyung held the stung area on his mouth, feeling it swell up from the irritation. Could today get any stranger?

"Is everything okay?" he unexpectedly saw Jungkook in the hallway, staring over at him with concerned eyes. "Who are you talking to?"

"Uhm..." embarrassingly, he kept his hand over the abrasion. And that in itself, urged Jungkook to stomp over into the open balcony and take ahold of his wrist, yanking it down, and examining what was underneath.

He looked down, spotting the dead bug instantly. "A bee sting? Why are you trying to hide it?"

"Does it look dumb?" Taehyung said, shying away from Jungkook's firm touch.

Jungkook scoffed. "Of course it does, it's a bee sting. Not a cut. Your fucking lip is swollen like a balloon."

That's the first type of aggressiveness he's ever shown towards Taehyung, surprising him. That feeling soon left when he saw that coy smile. And then a laugh as he began pulling Taehyung towards the hallway once again. "Come on, let's get some ointment on it."

It didn't take long for Jungkook to drag him all the way to the bathroom, sitting him down on the side of the tub, and began scouring through the drawers on the sink, searching for some type of medication. Taehyung sat there silently, waiting for him to find it, but it seemed to be taking longer than it should have. But of course... the drawers and cabinets weren't exactly clean...

So he did the one thing he could... Spoke.

"Y-You really don't have to... It'll be fine if I just leave it alone-"

"Oh hush," Jungkook demanded. "You live here, then you get treated like family. That's how it works."

"If that's true then why is Joohyun still being a bitch to me?"

Jungkook chuckled. "Because she is one. I told you that already."

Taehyung grew somber again. "Earlier this morning... you found a butterfly out there. I didn't think bugs came up this high when flying to the south."

"I didn't think so either..." he opened another drawer.

"You also said something about your life blooming still. Especially when you just met someone like me. What did you mean?" Taehyung asked.

The other man stopped what he was doing, a grave filter growing over his eyes. "I said it because I meant it... You seem important..."

He didn't reply noticing how Jungkook had finally found what he was looking for, grabbing q-tips and a band-aid with it. Jungkook sat down on the toilet, in front of Taehyung and opened the ointment bottle.

"Important? Why would I be important?"

He halted, staring at his hands. "Haven't you noticed how I've looked at you, Taehyung? It doesn't take a lot to realize I really like you."

Even though he knew it, deep down, it was still astonishing to hear it come from Jungkook. A full confession.

"And what about Jimin?" Taehyung demanded.

The man sitting before him shot him a deep glare, a glare full of emotion and spite for his lover's name. But it only lasted a millisecond before his gaze turned soft once more. "Jimin doesn't know. It's as simple as that."

Taehyung clenched his jaw, feeling his teeth grinding. Fuck... this was so _wrong_.

Jungkook commenced opening the ointment tube, squeezing the cream onto a q-tip and brought it towards Taehyung's sting wound. Of course, he moved away, reluctant to let Jungkook touch him after what he just told him, but he eventually allowed Jungkook to take the lead and place the medication on the swollen area.

Soon enough, he brought the bandage to the wound, sealing the ointment underneath it so no spray debris could get in. They both looked into each other's eyes.

"How do _you_ feel about me, Taehyung? And don't tell me something that other people would like to hear. What do _you_ think?"

He was silent for several seconds, pondering. How did he feel about Jungkook?

"I think you're... the most beautiful human being on earth."

The ferocity grew with every breathe, Jungkook's brown eyes exploding with ardor and electricity for Taehyung. His heart started beating against his ribcage.

"I bet," Jungkook says. "That the bee stung you because your lips taste like honey."

They grew closer, Jungkook leaning in despite the fact that Taehyung had a band-aid on his mouth. Jungkook obviously wanted to get just a small hint of that sweetness, brushing his lips against Taehyung.

Their breath clashed, warmth colliding against their cheeks.

Until... Taehyung finally made the first move, colliding his lips into Jungkook's. The soft exterior felt extremely luxurious and lush, clouding his head with differentiating thoughts.

Jungkook deepened the kiss, wrapping his fingers through Taehyung's long locks of blonde hair, moaning when Taehyung slipped his tongue out, asking for more.

But access was denied when Jungkook stopped suddenly.

A sigh escaped his lungs, as he leaned back away from Taehyung, a red flush growing over his skin and heated air leaving his mouth in a rhythmic state.

Fuck... _Fuck_... Taehyung wanted more. Taehyung wasn't the one that tasted like honey. It was Jungkook.

It was too late though... Just like before, Jungkook stood up, this blankness in his eyes, clearly starstruck from what just happened. Taehyung didn't want him to leave, he really didn't want it to be left like this. So cold and bittersweet.

But it had to be like this...

And yet... Taehyung couldn't get over how invigorating kissing Jungkook was.

He desired more.

So much more.

~~~~

It wasn't the first time that Taehyung had heard it.

Heard Jimin and Jungkook fucking.

He heard it practically every night.

Jimin had these deep groans every time he'd thrust into Jungkook's hole, but it wasn't as nearly as recognizable as Jungkook's loud and squeaky whines. They'd rise in pitch everytime Jimin touched him or slapped him around.

Right... this was the reason Jungkook had bruises.

He liked it, right?

When Jimin hit him, Jungkook felt and experienced more pleasure.

Right...?

When Taehyung had first heard it, it disgusted and scared him, to say the least. But he never heard crying or screaming. Just very passionate moans. And soon enough... he understood why Jungkook always had bruises covering his beautiful skin.

That night, he couldn't control it anymore... Control the urges that twitched in his pants.

Taehyung swallowed, zoning in on the sound of Jungkook's moans, trying to filter out any sound of Jimin.

Would he do it?

Again it repeated in his head. _This is wrong_...

But he couldn't help it, feeling his blood rush down to his groin, desire biting at his length.

He lingered for a long time, hoping it would stop soon, but it wouldn't... the whines only pounding in his head by this point.

So he moved his hand downward, filtering past the opening of his boxers and touching the bulge stuck underneath the fabric. It didn't take long before he pulled it out and sighed at the relief. He hissed at how sensitive he was due to the fact that he hasn't touched himself in months, wrapping his fist around himself.

Taehyung commenced pulling at it up and down, rubbing and squeezing slowly, a tight sound releasing from his throat.

Jungkook's light grunts were filling his mind and all he could fantasize about is what it would be like to have Jungkook's ass bouncing on top of his dick, heat filling up at the head of his penis.

"Shit..." he whispered to himself since he knew he was getting close.

He quickened his pace, urgent to get it over with, feeling his chest heaving with satisfaction at each pump. Finally... white liquid streaming out from his tip, dirtying the sheets of the bed and staining his boxers.

He cursed, tilting his head back at finally having released himself after so long.

After he had came, it didn't take long for Jimin and Jungkook to reach their climaxes before finishing, making Taehyung feel extremely guilty for even touching himself to the thought of another man's boyfriend.

During nights like these... He truly missed his sister...

~~~~

Taehyung shot up from his bed when Jimin barged in, yelling at him. At first, he thought it was over. Jimin had found out about the kiss, about everything and Taehyung was about to fucking die, but in fact... it was far from that.

"Taehyung! Get your ass up!" he screamed. Taehyung, his mind groggy from sleep, had just noticed something about Jimin, his eyes focusing on his hands. Blood... There was crimson blood staining Jimin's hands. "Joohyun's been shot! Get out here and help us now!"

It didn't matter that it was Joohyun, he was fucking terrified. His hands trembling as he followed Jimin out of the room, impending steps slamming against the floor. The living room was hectic, Namjoon on the phone, his voice being drowned out due to the fact that Joohyun was shrieking in pure and utter agony.

Jungkook was helping Sooyoung stabilize Joohyun's thrashing body, holding down her legs. Sooyoung was bent down over Joohyun, trying her best to examine what seemed to be Joohyun's bleeding shoulder.

"Hold still, Joohyun! I know it hurts!" Sooyoung snapped, pushing Joohyun back down onto the couch. She finally noticed Taehyung and Jimin come back. "Jimin hold down her shoulders! Quick!"

Taehyung, frozen in his place and had no idea what the hell was happening. Joohyun got shot? How?! Where?!

Sooyoung twisted her head to look at Taehyung, scowling in response. "Get your ass over here now and hold her head down!"

"No!" Joohyun immediately screamed, squirming under Jimin's touch. "If that fucking mongrel touches me, I swear to God!"

Taehyung continued to linger, scared Joohyun would try something if he prevented her from moving. Sooyoung yelled back at her. "Do you wanna die or live, damn it?!?"

And the passion in that statement was enough to make Taehyung's legs finally work, rounding towards Joohyun's head and helping Jimin and Jungkook hold her down.

Joohyun began screaming at Taehyung's touch, like it was the worst thing she had ever felt, trying to butt her head away from his grip. Anxiety filled his body. Fuck... this was...

"Hold on, dear," Sooyoung muttered, bringing out alcohol to clean the wound.

Joohyun knew that a wave of pain was gonna strike her, watching as Sooyoung tipped the bottle over her injury, the clear substance pouring into the bloody wound. A loud roar erupted from her body, making her tremble in pure agony, twitching with each bubble that popped on the laceration.

Her skin was so sweaty and hot, tears combining with the sweat. It took him a while, but after the hydrogen peroxide subsided, he finally realized what she was yelling.

"Don't fucking touch me! Don't touch me!" she repeated in the heat of the moment.

Sooyoung stopped for a second, an epiphany growing in her eyes. "Fuck...  She's losing blood..."

Sooyoung shot up her gaze from Joohyun and looked straight at Taehyung, pulling out an IV kit from the bag she had beside her. "Taehyung, give me your arm!"

"W-What?" Taehyung asked, bewildered.

"Just give me your damn arm," she yanked his wrist towards her, rolled up his sleeve, and exposed the pulsing veins underneath his skin.

She instantly began rubbing his arm with an alcohol pad, intending to stab his vein with the IV. "B-But..."

"When you were shot, Joohyun was the one who had the same blood type as you. She's losing blood quick and she needs it," she explained, focusing more on what she was doing than what she was telling him. Taehyung switched his gaze back and forth from Joohyun and his arm, witnessing Jimin place pressure against Joohyun's wound so she wouldn't lose any more fluids.

An aching sensation filled his arm when he saw Sooyoung stab it with the needle, the tube almost instantaneously filling with scarlet substance. Sooyoung held up the packaging of what would soon be filled with blood above her head, handing it to Jimin before connecting another tube to Joohyun's arm.

It was a messy situation, but Taehyung obediently still held Joohyun's head while keeping his other arm still for the IV, letting it suck the liquid from his body at an alarming rate.

Soon, Joohyun's shaking and trashing began to die down, noticing how exhausted she must be, her lids fluttering every time Sooyoung touched her. By now, Sooyoung was finishing up, sewing away at the wound and closing it off with a bandage.

It was a long process, the whole thing lasting around two hours, the sunrise peaking in through the windows.

The screaming had died down, and Namjoon was done with making what looked to be extremely serious phone calls. Jimin was now speaking with Namjoon in hushed tones, Jungkook comforting the sleepy Joohyun with whispered words, and Sooyoung placing a band-aid over the needle puncture, Taehyung finished with blood donating.

His arm would twitch with an aching feeling every now and again, but it wasn't something he couldn't endure. Sooyoung wouldn't be the best nurse... that's for sure.

Jimin was the first one to approach him after everything, beckoning him to follow him upstairs. At first, Taehyung thought that they would probably go to his office to speak once again, but it was different this time.

Jimin had stopped in front of the balcony entrance, opening the glass sliding door, and stepping outside, Taehyung mimicking him.

And like always, it was quiet for a while. Jimin had pulled out a package of cigarettes and offered him one, but Taehyung denied it. The last thing he needed was to kill his lungs.

Jimin's hands were still stained with blood, his shirt, and pants just as bad. A puff of smoke exited his mouth and made a cloud that swiftly disappeared into the chilly morning air.

"What a couple of shitty two days, huh?"

"Yeah..." Taehyung leaned against the door frame, crossing his arms.

Jimin ran his fingers through his faded red hair. "A fucking mess is what this is. A whole fucking mess..." Taehyung stayed silent. "There was a shooting at one my dad's warehouses... Joohyun was there. We still don't know who it was that started the shooting or _why_. Namjoon and I are planning on going there to figure out what happened now that Joohyun's stabalized."

Taehyung blinked. "May I come?"

Jimin blinked, nodding. "Yeah... I guess... But only because I don't think this has anything to do with the police officer."

"How do you know?"

"Kim Seokjin is smart... Sooyoung told me he was the top of his class at every school he went to. He wouldn't just shoot up my warehouse a day after we met him. That's stupid. Someone else is doing this... Someone who thinks we're weak because my father is off doing business in Seoul."

Taehyung rubbed his finger over the band-aid on his arm. "I see..." a thought came to him. "Hey, Jimin. Was I that bad when I was shot?"

"No... You were worse," he replied before dropping the cigarette off the side of the balcony and letting it fall all the way down to the bottom of the city streets.

Well... Damn...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THEY FUCKING KISSED REEEEEEEE!
> 
>  
> 
> Make sure to leave kudos and comments uwu


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Three seconds. Three seconds and if you don't tell the truth by then, you don't get to live. Understood?"
> 
> "Three..."
> 
> "Two..." Jimin cocked the gun.
> 
> "One..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I'm so sorry for the wait, but ch 10 is finally here! WARNING: There is descriptions of dead bodies and torture in this chapter so be careful!

Busan was lit up like a beacon at night. Flashing neon lights from bars or simple convenience stores. Other cars would race past them at their own speed, some fast and some slow. Taehyung was currently counting the number of red vehicles they passed. So far, he has spotted only five of them. Not many people enjoyed such a vibrant color, did they? Perhaps because it was too bright? Too easily noticeable? Or maybe it's because it resembled the color of death too much.

Black did as well... But people liked it a lot more. Just like Jimin did.

Perhaps it's because people liked being hidden at night, unnoticeable and concealed? That's right. People liked being hidden at night. Everyone was different at night. That's when the darkest parts of people arrived.

Taehyung sighed, adjusting the sleeve to the suit jacket he was wearing. Yes, an actual suit jacket. It's something he hasn't worn in years and honestly... it felt uncomfortable. His whole wardrobe has changed in a matter of a few months ever since he got shot. With the help of Sooyoung and Jungkook, he's had a lot more options when it came to clothing. A lot more luxurious and expensive options...

"Are you sure that we should be going here, Namjoon?" Jimin's voice snapped Taehyung out of his thought process.

Namjoon nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. You know that we can't let information like this leak. We already know that it will eventually, but if we get there first, then the fact that one of your warehouses was shot up won't get out as fast."

"It's fucking dangerous though," Jimin crossed his arms and pouted. "Should've just let a couple of mutts take care of this bullshit."

Namjoon scoffed. "You call Joohyun getting shot bullshit?"

"Far from it... I'm just saying that investigating the warehouse is bullshit."

"Whatever," Namjoon who was driving rolled his eyes. "But you know that if we had let anyone else go, you'd spend the rest of your days wondering if you missed something. You know you have to see the crime scene yourself. You're a visual person, aren't you?"

"Shut the hell up," Jimin snapped.

It grew quiet, Taehyung listening to the engine of the car before Namjoon parted his lips once more. "If we left earlier during the day, we wouldn't be doing this at night."

That's right... It took Jimin all day before he could finally leave Joohyun with just Sooyoung and Jungkook even though Sooyoung continued to try and push him out the door.

"I couldn't just leave when she was in that state..." Jimin murmured.

Taehyung licked his lips, feeling awkward for hearing such a heartfelt statement from this man. Suddenly, he spotted another one pass by. A red semi-truck, speeding past them. That was number six.

Seeing that semi-truck reminded him of something. Something he couldn't quite recall, but it started digging into the back of his head, like a woodpecker pecking away into a tree's trunk with its beak. It commenced stabbing into his brain until he felt a chill run down his spine, ripping him out of that repetitive trance.

"We're here..." Namjoon whispered despite being in this car. Taehyung looked over the man's shoulder, out the window and at the square building with large garage-like doors. Almost like a storage unit would have. But this is definitely like the warehouse Taehyung had imagined.

It didn't take long to find a parking spot and for everyone to swing open the doors and step out onto the damp asphalt. It crunched under Taehyung's leather shoes.

At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The drowned-out sound of tires on concrete rang out and then the flick of Jimin's lighter echoed to the left of him. Jimin to swipe out his lighter for his gun, nodding to both of the other guys indicating to follow him, stay quiet, stay alert, and to get their weapons out all in one gesture. Taehyung had learned this same movement a while back when Namjoon had been teaching him the philosophies of this rugged life.

It's no shocker that Jimin would want them to stay silent, considering the dire situation at hand. Taehyung, despite asking to go with them, felt a tinge of fear tugging at his shirt. He knew that these types of circumstances weren't good, especially after the many things Namjoon had warned him about.

"It doesn't matter what type of 'mission' you're on," he had said. "If you hold any type of power in this world, you're in danger. A simple drug run? You're gonna get shot. Driving with a friend? You just cost them their life. Going to steal something? You're already dead. Doesn't matter if you've done nothing wrong, Tae. The moment you wanted to get your sister back, you gained power. Now people want you dead. Simple as that. I, myself, have been running from that fate since the day I was born. The point is, you always have to keep your head up, eyes open, and ears alert. Got it?"

And that's exactly what Taehyung intended to do. Especially now.

Jimin reached his hand out, resting it onto the handle of the warehouse's door and looking back at both of them, his body in an old-fashioned FBI tense stance that they did when they were about to break into a house.

"One, two... three," Jimin hissed on _three_ and slammed the door forward, his gun pointed forward just in case anyone was ahead of him and turned a corner, Namjoon and Taehyung pouring in after him.

Taehyung turned the left, Namjoon headed forward, and Jimin went to the right. They were like a SWAT team and that honestly made Taehyung feel a bit strange. How in the world had he gotten to this point in his life?

The things that greeted them was most certainly disturbing, to say the least. Piles upon piles of bodies showered the floor, blood puddles surrounding them. Several guns could be seen right next to said bodies. Some bodies wore lab coats, indicating they had been working on their simple drug components when they had been attacked.

Others had on regular clothes, some wearing strange military, camouflage pants. Were these Jimin's men or the intruders?

"Yeah, we were outnumbered, it looks like..." Namjoon spoke up, scanning over one of the many bodies. The one he hovered over was a female, crimson coating her lips.

"Who do you think it was?" Taehyung asked, still keeping his gun up just in case. He felt his arm trembling though.

Jimin sighed and looked over. "Keep your elbows relaxed, Tae. It will help keep your hands steady," he informed the nervous kid, Taehyung instantly accommodating. "I have no idea who did this. These guys look like a low-grade gang if anything. These are pretty cheap guns as well." He lightly moved one of the weapons he was looking down at with his foot.

"You think it was really that though?" Namjoon scoffed. "A simple no-name hitting up a big-shot family like ours? Hell no."

"Perhaps they got ahead of themselves and grew cocky?" Taehyung questioned.

"Naw..." Jimin squatted down. "Gangs like those don't suddenly get cocky. Restless, maybe, but never cocky."

Taehyung didn't say anything else after that, turning around to take a gander at the rest of the massive building. Just like underneath the dealership, this warehouse had rows of workstations for crafting and boiling different kinds of serums and substances. It also had it's makeshift greenhouse, sprinklers and heat lamps sitting above the different marijuana plants.

But there was one slight difference compared to the dealership... The dealership was bustling with people.

He lowered his gun at that thought. Shit.

Coughs could abruptly be heard from behind them. At first, Taehyung had mistaken it for Namjoon's raspy coughs, until he heard them become moister and more rigid. Those were the sounds of a wounded person.

Taehyung twisted around and gasped, seeing Jimin and Namjoon dash towards something in pursuit. "Fuck! He's still alive!" Jimin spat, Taehyung immediately running forward as well once he heard those words.

It was a man, spazzing in an eruption of pain, clutching down on a gun wound below his stomach. He wheezed and twitched in agony, spitting up blood every few milliseconds. Namjoon's response was to put pressure on the said wound.

"Don't worry," Jimin reassured. "We're gonna get you help!"

This was clearly one of Jimin's 'mutts', as he would put it, but as nasty as he would talk about them, he seemed very concerned about this wounded soldier.

"D-D-" the man gurgled, saliva leaking from his mouth.

"Shhh..." Namjoon urged. "Don't try to talk." He removed his flannel and abruptly ripped it to shreds with his bare hands, his muscles flexing before he began wrapping the temporary bandage around the man's torso.

Taehyung squinted, seeing how concerned the man looked. He seemed almost oblivious to the situation like he was ignoring the pain.

"Get-Get... o-" he tried once more, failure reaching his lungs.

What was he trying to say? Get? Get what?

Realizing he was unable to communicate his concern, the man resorted to movement, screaming at himself for doing such a horrendous thing to his body. But he had to show it. And Taehyung's breathe caught in his throat when he saw it.

_Tick, tock. Tick, tock._

"Run!!!" Jimin screamed, tackling Namjoon away from the hopeless victim and sliding at least several feet away. Taehyung followed the directions and leaped at full strength away from the man, his elbows sliding against the hard floor as he covered his ears and head.

The loud and fiery boom rattled the ground, Taehyung feeling the vibrations up and down his body. The heat seemed to grab at his back, licking his shoulders and causing a yelp to escape his lips.

It took several moments before Taehyung could turn back to the man's spot, only seeing the remnants of black ash and a dented-in floor, cracked and destroyed. His gaze instantly flew over to Jimin and Namjoon's spot to make sure they were alright, luckily being so, their intense gazes staring at the area where the man had once been laying.

Luckily... it hadn't been that big of an explosion...

Was that... a suicide bomber... Or had someone done that to him...?

"Fuck!" Jimin shrieked in anger, rising from the floor. He kicked a gun close to him across the floor, letting out his fury. "What the shit!"

He was either upset about losing the man or losing a source. Either way... it still was aggravating and Taehyung could understand his frustration.

Namjoon placed his clearly burnt hand onto Jimin's shoulder in hopes to calm him down. They were much closer to the patient, so it was no wonder they had received the brunt of the attack. Jimin had a singed eyebrow, appearing quite weird.

"W-Was he the one that did that...?" Taehyung questioned.

Namjoon squinted over at the spot the man had been, walking over, and crouching to examine what looked to be some sort of tethered clothing piece. It was from the man himself. A piece of his jacket. "No... The guy was trying to tell us to run away, I think. Someone else did that to him."

"That means someone knows we're here," Jimin cursed under his breathe before taking out a handkerchief and rubbing some sweat from his forehead. "Tae, start looking at the other bodies to see if there are any survivors or any more bombs as well. Joon and I are gonna check out the west side of the warehouse, got it?"

Taehyung nodded.

"If you find anything, yell."

Both of the other wary looking men raised their pistols once again and headed towards the farther side of the warehouse, which was stacked high with boxes and cargo meant for shipping. Taehyung wetted his lips and stepped forward, that tense feeling still edging at his abdomen, but he couldn't help, but do what he was told.

He gave one last glare at the burnt and blackened area the victim had been before leaning down and looking over another body. A man in his late thirties it seemed, wearing a black vest over his white long-sleeved shirt and some cargo pants. A pained expression written on his face with dull and sullen brown eyes.

Blood dripped from the wound on his temple, an automatic rifle sitting awkwardly in his right hand. Not a survivor and he didn't have any bombs strapped to him either luckily.

He moved to the next body.

Taehyung's hands shook as he saw that the body was clearly turned over. He couldn't determine anything from here, so he cautiously dug his fingers underneath the torso and maneuvered it over, feeling the limpness and lingering warmth coming from the being.

It was a female, blonde dyed hair, with closed eyes. Scarlet juices pooled around her head, but he couldn't really spot where she had been hit. She was definitely dead though. Definitely dead.

No bombs here either.

Just as Taehyung moved onto the next one, he had this strange sensation. A very strange one.

Was someone watching him?

He looked up from the ground and looked towards the place where Jimin and Namjoon had left.

"Jimi-"

He was cut off by a very familiar sound. A gun cocking. "Ah, ah, ah..." he heard from behind. "The last I want is for your friends to come running, huh? Let's just keep this nice and slow. Hand over your weapon and there'll be no problems."

Hesitantly, Taehyung reached to the back of his belt and took ahold of the heavy handle, lifting it from the holster and bringing it above his head to present to the perpetrator behind him.

He could feel the cold barrel poke into the nape of his neck, causing him to flinch a little at its touch. Yep... he was scared, his lips parted to allow his breaths to come out lightly.

"Good boy," it was a male voice with an edge to it. Probably someone in their twenties. It would have been soothing to listen to if this were an entirely different situation, but it wasn't. "Now we're going to slowly walk to the exit without you making a sound. Not one peep."

Taehyung felt the barrel poke into him more harshly, indicating that it was time to start walking or he might risk getting killed. He took a large and slow step over a body, careful not to make a noise like the man had informed him to do.

Shit... this wasn't good at all.

They both slowly made their way through the maze of victims before Taehyung stopped in front of the door Jimin and them had entered through. The barrel shoved into his elbow and he swiftly took a hold of the door handle and creaked it open slowly. Those loud sounds made Taehyung's stomach flip 360 degrees before he stepped outside. Despite his wishes to get rescued by his friends, he still was terrified it would motivate the enemy to pull the trigger.

Finally, outside, the guy took ahold of Taehyung's bicep aggressively and began pushing him forward towards the direction of one of the many cars in the parking lot. Taehyung still couldn't get a good look at their face though considering the fact that the gun was up against his temple now.

Soon they made it to a deep crimson Toyota vehicle as the man shoved him into the car and opened the back door, grabbing what looked to be a single zip tie and placed both of Taehyung's hands behind him in a criss-cross formation.

A gunshot went off.

Both of the men jumped in pure and utter surprise before Taehyung noticed that the man that was about to tie him up had dodged behind his car, alert and ready for anything, leaving Taehyung in the line of fire. Or that's what he thought before he realized it was Park Jimin that had shot that bullet at the enemy.

Both Jimin and Namjoon were yards away from where Taehyung stood, taking cover behind different vehicles as the perpetrator took out his own weapon and started attacking them, loud gunshots echoing through the parking lot.

Taehyung's breathing got caught in his throat, sitting there, frozen in place with his hands over his ears.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" he murmured in retaliation to what was going on.

This aching sensation started to grow in his stomach like it had before he had heard the bomb go off. It was pure dismay, making his hair stand on end and his teeth chatter. He was gonna get shot! He was gonna get shot!

He wanted to move- _God_ , he wanted to move so badly. But he couldn't, sitting in place pathetically, his legs shaking at the sounds of real gunfire filling up all around him.

Usually... in such apprehensive situations... Adrenaline would replace this terrifying daze that commenced to bear down on his shoulders, but he really couldn't do anything this time, barely taking notice of his surroundings.

That was until he felt a hand on his knee.

"Taehyung...! Taehyung! Get up now!" the comforting voice astonished him, along with a wetness that stained his eyelashes. He'd been crying...

Jimin was giving a very intense stare down at him. "Tae, come on," he demanded, offering him his own gun. "We gotta go catch this dude!"

"I-I can't-" Taehyung sputtered, snot leaving his red and flushed nose.

Jimin gave him a puzzled look. "What are you talking about?! Taehyung, we need you! Namjoon already ran off after the man, but he needs help!" He was yelling, very insistent as the gunshots continued to ring out.

"I-I'm s-sorry... I can't!" Taehyung gasped. "I re-really can't!"

"Why not?!"

"I offered to come with you... s-saying I was ready, but I'm not! I really c-can't!" More tears lept from Taehyung's eyes, this burning fear not leaving anytime soon. Hiccups left his esophagus as he placed his hands over his heated face.

Jimin scoffed. "Fine. Just stay put."

He scurried off, dirt picking up from underneath his soles and leaving Taehyung there distressingly.

He couldn't believe it... He had denied Jimin of what he had promised. He had said that he could become this bigshot ally for him, but here is... sitting in his own snot and tears while they chased after the enemy.

Dead bodies? Fine, he could deal with that. Shooting a practice target? All good there. Actually participating in what Jimin needed from him? What they _all_ needed from him? He can't even lift a finger... Pitiful...

He killed another man for god's sake and now he can't even help them!!! What the hell is wrong with him!?

Taehyung looked up at the light gray sky, a harsh inhale entering his lungs... And he just sat there.

In spite of him degrading himself, he still didn't have the courage to rise to his feet and go after them, therefore making this situation even ten times worse than it already was.

"Fuck... me..." he whispered.

He didn't know how long it was until they came back, but they did with the guy they had apprehended successfully... Right... Taehyung wasn't needed after all because in the end... He was useless...

~~~~

The man was fairly handsome... Very handsome, in fact. It was almost unreal. His brunette hair matched well with his brown eyes, wide brown eyes that complimented his pale skin. He wore a long trench coat and a white turtle-neck sweater that had a few droplets of blood splattered on its surface.

Currently, he was tied to a chair inside of the warehouse they had been investigating, staring up at the three of them with what seemed to be a lot of confidence. He didn't look terrified at all despite a red bruise- where one of the men had hit him earlier- on his left cheekbone.

"Well, isn't this just lovely," he scoffed.

"Yeah, it is, isn't it?" Jimin dragged over another chair and sat in it backward, crossing his arms over the edge of the backside. Taehyung stood his distance, only observing this scene play out.

To be honest, he didn't want to say or do anything, not after what he had just done, leaving Jimin and Namjoon to do all the dirty work. Disgusting...

"It's been a fat minute since I last saw you, Hongbin," Jimin unexpectedly said, acknowledging the enemy in front of him. Jimin knows this guy. "How old were you? Ten?"

"Yep," Hongbin's lips curl into a malicious smile. "I'm glad you remember me, sweet Jiminie. You've definitely grown up from being just a spoiled eight-year-old brat, I see. You too, Joon Joon."

Joon Joon?

Namjoon's brow twitched from hearing the pet name.

"Lee Hongbin... You've reached the lowest of lows, haven't you? Are your men the ones that shot up my warehouse?" Jimin's gaze grew intense, clearly fury rising inside him.

"Last time I checked, this warehouse is your father's."

"You know, as well as everybody else knows in Busan, that my father is on a business trip in Seoul."

Hongbin snickered. "So everything's yours while he's gone off to fuck with his playthings in Seoul, right? Funny how that works."

Jimin bit his lip. "Tsk... You really shouldn't insult him in front of his own son. That's disrespectful. Besides, I'm not the one tied up here. Just answer the question, okay? Pretty simple. Did your men shoot up this warehouse or not?"

Hongbin's eye flickered with this certain playful attitude. He wasn't letting up anytime soon, obviously. Jimin saw this and stood up from where he was sitting and pushed away his chair with his foot slowly, the screeching noise of the legs against the concrete floor made Taehyung's ears hurt.

This was done in order to bother Hongbin who's face contorted painfully at the unpleasant sound.

"You've always been one annoying asshole, haven't you, Hongbin?" Jimin muttered.

"It's a _talent_ of mine."

"Fine... Let's see if that annoyingness can keep up, then," Jimin mocked before pulling out his gun and pointing it right between Hongbin's eyes. "Three seconds. Three seconds and if you don't tell the truth by then, you don't get to live. Understood?"

Hongbin didn't move an inch at the threat, but his eyes wavered a bit. He was clearly very fraught.

"Three..."

"Two..." Jimin cocked the gun.

"One..."

Taehyung closed his eyes, waiting for the trigger pull, but found that no such thing occurred, a grin growing on Hongbin's face once more.

"You're just like your fath-" Hongbin began saying, but Jimin interrupted the statement by bringing the handle of the gun down onto the top of Hongbin's head, a deep thud being heard. It wasn't enough to knock the guy out, dark liquid only pouring over his left eye.

"How exactly am I like my father, again?" he barked. "I don't think my father... Is very... blunt, you know? Not blunt at all, Hongbin. You know how he is, he always lets his prisoners go the easiest way using that trick. If he doesn't get that piece of information using that technique, then he just simply starves them until they do. Me, on the other hand... I'm not that patient."

Jimin sends Namjoon a glare, telling him to grab something.

Namjoon turns around and retrieves what seems to be some sort of duffle bag stashed full of objects.

"I'm not patient at all when it comes to getting info," Jimin bent down to his knees to search inside the duffle bag and brought out what seemed to some sort of drill. An electric one. "Not patient at all."

Jimin walks over to Hongbin and sits down next to the man's left tied foot. He begins removing the man's fancy-looking leather shoe along with the sock. Taehyung could see Hongbin's eyes widen, a sweat droplet falling off his nose.

"I really hate doing this to you, Hongbin, especially after all the history we've had together, but sadly... _history class must come to an end at some point, right_?" Jimin pressed the button on the electric drill, a continuous buzzing making itself known. "But I really must know... Was it your men? Or did you just come to steal the last of the goods, huh? Also... Why would you want to snatch one of my men? That's just rude."

Jimin pressed the button again.

_Buzz._

_Buzz._

_Buzzzzzzz._

Taehyung could now see real terror inside Hongbin's gaze, the drill reflecting itself in his brown, chocolate eyes.

"J-Jimin..." Namjoon muttered. "Isn't this..."

Namjoon trailed off, a bit too scared himself to stop this from happening. W-Wasn't this what Namjoon was used to, though...?

The tool commenced to inch closer and closer to Hongbin's biggest toe, it wiggling violently like a worm about to be fed to a group of baby birds. It curled and unclenched, trying to escape from its predator until finally... it was too late.

A bloodcurdling shriek echoed through the warehouse, the drill spinning furiously as it cut through both bone and flesh at Jimin's pressure. White skin flakes and red blood droplets masked the drill's metal.

Taehyung's heart started beating against his chest as he watched this unfold, his groin burning with anxiety. Shit... What the shit...

Hongbin's face was contorted painfully as he clenched his jaw, sucking cool air in between his teeth, making a hissing sound.

"If you don't start talking, you're gonna lose all your toes, you know?" Jimin smirked.

Was that... an evil smirk?

Was he... _liking_ this?

Taehyung flinched when he heard Hongbin scream once more at Jimin jamming the torture device deep into the second toe on his left foot. His body- writhing in agony-twitched with each movement, his breath ragged and weak.

He didn't even want to imagine the pain this guy was in.

"FUUUUUUCCCKKK!" Hongbin yelled, indicating he'd give in soon, hopefully.

God, Taehyung hoped.

The third toe took longer to completely drill away to only a stub. Jimin struggled with getting past the bone, but manage to rip it in half soon enough, poking away at the flesh and allowing Hongbin to struggle some more.

"It can all be over, you just gotta speak up."

The man's pale face grew paler, sweat drenching his white turtleneck, something Taehyung has never seen happen to a sweater. The tails of his trenchcoat fell to the ground and began soaking up some of the blood that came from his foot, draining out into a deep and dark puddle.

And finally... right before Jimin was about to drill the fourth toe away, Hongbin piped up. "St-Stop! P-Please! I-I'll comply! I'll comply!"

His voice was shaky and cracked.

"They weren-weren't my men... K-Kang Seulgi..." Jimin stood up when Hongbin started talking. "Kang Seulgi is the one that sent me with her men to shoot up this place. I w-was supposed to come back tonight to plant the bombs and get r-rid of this place completely."

Park Jimin lit a cigarette and puffed the smoke into Hongbin's face. "Kang Seulgi? You're... apart of the Jung Family though. What business do you have with Kang Seulgi?"

"Sir Taekwoon recently made a deal with her," Hongbin's head was tilted back, positioned against the back of the chair, perspiration sliding down his Adam's apple. "They're now allies... So whatever Seulgi wants from us, she'll get."

Jimin squinted. "What deal?"

"Sex trafficking... Sir Taekwoon took an interest in it and now... He serves her like a dog..."

Jimin hummed, nodding. "Taekwoon and sex trafficking...?" he finally looked into Hongbin's eyes for the first time since he began torturing the poor guy. "Impossible. The Jung family detests sex trafficking."

Hongbin licked his lips. "That's what I thought too until that wench got her hands around Sir Taekwoon's neck."

"You serve her and yet you call her a wench...?" Namjoon finally spoke.

"I serve no one..." Hongbin barked. "besides Sir Taekwoon."

"What also seems impossible is the fact that Jung Taekwoon is the one being seduced by Kang Seulgi," Jimin placed the drill against Hongbin's neck. "That guy rarely bends to anyone's will, much less a woman's. Are you sure you ain't lying to me?"

"I-I promise. I'm not lying," Hongbin's voice shook. "I don't know the details personally, but... I think she promised him a great sum of money if he helped her with the sex trafficking gig. But that's all I know."

"Even money doesn't move that man..." Jimin's nonexistent brow twitched. "You better not be playing me, pretty boy."

"I promise," Hongbin ground his teeth. "I don't even know for sure if it was money he was given, because if that's the case, I should've been informed being the Treasurer and such, but all I've been given is orders by Kang Seulgi herself. In fact, I haven't heard from the boss in two weeks so I really wouldn't know."

Jimin's face softened at Hongbin's confession, backing away from him. He sighed and dropped the tool he was holding and ran his dirtied hands through his dull red hair. "Okay... Fine, I believe you... Only for now. Namjoon, clean him and-"

Taehyung couldn't hold it in any longer. He turned on his heels and sprinted past a large shelf holding some cargo and out the nearest door. He seemed to exit onto some sort of fire escape, standing on a metal balcony before retching his guts up over the side of the railing. Bile escaped his stomach and splattered all over the floor at the bottom of the alley.

He coughed a few more times, waiting for the rest of his dinner to come up only to feel a hand being placed on his back. "I'm... truly sorry you had to see that..." Jimin consoled. He petted his backside soothingly. "I really thought you were ready and qualified for this line of work, but I guess... I was w-"

"No-" Taehyung gasped out. "I-I'm sorry... I'm sorry I didn't help at all with him. I should've ran after him as well, but I didn't. I am ready, I just... I wasn't during that moment... Give me another chance and I'll prove myself, I promise. I'm not gonna wait around for you guys to find my sister when I can do it myself. Really, I can."

Jimin bit on the inside of his cheek. "Good."

That's all he said before walking back into the building.

~~~~

During the car ride to another one Jimin's warehouses, Hongbin sat in the backseat with his damaged foot wrapped sloppily in a soaked-through bandage, a bit of blood dripping onto the floor of Jimin's car.

Despite him looking extremely exhausted, Hongbin appeared to be facing Taehyung with an intrigued glance.

Taehyung kept peaking over, catching sight of Hongbin staring at him with an intense flare in his eyes. Wh-What was he staring at? Was there something on his face?

A flush ran through Taehyung's head, causing his ears to go beat red.

Hongbin finally spoke to him. "You're a sight for sore eyes, you know that, right?"

Taehyung frowned and looked up at him, puzzled. "M-Me?"

"Yeah you, cutie," Hongbin was quick to give him a pet name. Or was that a compliment? "Blonde hair looks good on you, ya know?"

Taehyung crinkled his eyebrows. Was this... flirtation?

Taehyung uncomfortably turned and looked out the window at the night sky, avoidant of any eye contact with this... intimidating man.

That was until he felt something on his right cheek, forcibly turning his head towards Hongbin. It was Hongbin's uninjured foot that had turned his head, making him stare right back at him. Naturally, he would have reacted hostilely, but... he honestly didn't know how to react to this man considering Taehyung had watched him get tortured only moments ago.

"It's mean to ignore someone who's talkin' to you," Hongbin grins, placing his bound hands on his knee. "What's your name, cutie?"

"Kim Taehyung."

Lee Hongbin's eyes lit up. "Ah, so you're the blondie everyone's talking about. They never mentioned how pretty you are."

Taehyung ignored that.

"Tell me, are you Jiminie's new plaything like they've been saying? Or are you Joon Joon's plaything? It's okay, you can tell me. I'll keep it a secret," Hongbin giggles.

"I'm not-" Jimin slammed down on the breaks and gave Namjoon a fierce glare. They both stepped out of the car and rounded to Hongbin's side, opening the door, and dragging him out of the vehicle. Taehyung watched in astonishment as the two men didn't even wait to place the annoying being into the trunk so he'd quit speaking his nonsense.

As rigid as it was, Taehyung was grateful, watching as they both got back into their rightful positions in the front seats.

"Damn annoying asshole," Jimin murmured.

Abruptly, Taehyung recalled the sixth red semi-truck and where he remembered it from. Didn't his friend have a truck like that once?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out my other fic! Paper Doll! And don't forget to leave kudos and comments! :V


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